LG Chem overtook Panasonic of Japan and CATL of China as the No. 1 player in the global electric vehicle battery market.
Samsung SDI and SK Innovation also ranked fourth and seventh, respectively, maintaining the top 10 for all three Korean companies.
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis, fierce competition is expected in the future as the Korean companies have benefited from the sluggish business of Chinese companies.
According to SNE Research, a market research company specializing in energy, LG Chem batteries accounted for 27.1 percent of the battery usage of electric vehicles registered in countries around the world in the first quarter of this year.
It more than doubled from 10.7 percent in the first quarter of last year, becoming the first market leader since the tally was compiled.
SNE Research explained, "LG Chemical batteries have seen their payload surge due to strong sales of Tesla Model 3, Audi E-Tron, and Renault Zoe."
Analysts say the record was possible due to the diversification of its portfolio and supply to Tesla's GigaFactory in Shanghai, China.
LG Chem's market share more than doubled from the first quarter of last year, surpassing Panasonic (25.7 percent), which had topped the list until February.
Panasonic, on the other hand, is believed to have lost its market share due to a decrease in supply to Tesla's plants in the U.S. in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
China's CATL and BYD were also hit directly by the COVID-19, with their first-quarter market share standing at 17.4 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively. In particular, BYD's market share was one-third of that of the same period last year (15.1 percent).
Korea's three battery makers' combined share in the first quarter reached 37.5 percent, more than doubling from 16.4 percent in the same period last year. Samsung SDI recorded 6.0 percent and SK Innovation 4.5 percent, respectively, ranking fourth and seventh.
In the future, the three domestic battery companies will face difficulties as the U.S. and European markets, which are major entrants of the COVID-19, are hit and the Chinese market, which is packed with their rivals, is recovering, SNE Research predicted.
