Pursuing sustainable growth through a value-centered approach: Dr. Robin Zeng

"Players in the battery industry should compete on technology advancement, safety, reliability, delivering value that will accelerate the energy transition and secure our green future," said Dr. Robin Zeng, chairman and CEO of CATL, at the 15th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions, or Summer Davos, in northeast China's Dalian city. 

Speaking at the "Not Losing Momentum on the Energy Transition" session on June 25, Dr. Zeng emphasized that competition must occur during a product's entire life cycle, not as simply as one-off price reductions. By comparing products with different life cycle performance but similar prices, Dr. Zeng noted that the cost per cycle and overall performance make CATL's batteries more valuable. "Competing for long-term value is key for our industry's sustainable energy transition," said Dr. Zeng. 

He explained that the actual investment instead of R&D percentage paints a more accurate picture of R&D intensity and commitment. In 2023, CATL invested about 18.4 billion yuan (about 2.59 billion U.S. dollars) in R&D. This significant investment has led to breakthroughs like TENER, the world's first mass-producible energy storage system with zero degradation in the first five years of use, and Shenxing PLUS, the world's first LFP battery that achieves a range above 1,000 kilometers with 4C superfast charging. 

He also shared CATL's progress on developing condensed batteries for electric airplanes — a 4-ton electric plane has already taken off using this battery. Looking ahead, CATL plans to develop batteries for 8.8-ton aircrafts that can fly over 2,000 km. 

Safety is of paramount importance for CATL. Dr. Zeng stressed the importance of improving cell defect rate to one in a billion (PPB), a standard that goes well beyond the Six Sigma standard of one in a million (PPM). 

During another session, "Unpacking Batteries," Professor Ni Jun, Chief Manufacturing Officer of CATL, emphasized the critical importance of designing batteries with recyclability in mind. CATL has adopted a zero-carbon strategy to prioritize using reusable and renewable materials and facilitate recycling. In 2023, CATL recycled 100,000 tons of used batteries to produce 13,000 tons of lithium carbonate.