Shanghai (ZXZC)- On Dec. 19, 2021, Chinese power battery giant CATL held the ground-breaking ceremony for its new-type lithium ion battery manufacturing base in Xiamen city, Fujian Province.

Photo credit: CATL

Located in Xiamen Torch High-Tech Industrial Development Zone, the first phase of the Xiamen battery manufacturing base involves a total investment of 7 billion yuan ($1.1 billion) and covers a floorage of 710,000 square meters.

The commencement of the construction came after CATL announced this project on Nov. 5. According to the company's statement, the building of the Xiamen battery factory will be managed by Xiamen CATL Co.,Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of CATL, and is expected to be completed within 26 months after the construction starts. Thus, the Xiamen manufacturing base is scheduled to begin operation before March 2024.

CATL said this investment is in line with its strategic develop planning, future business development and market expansion demands, and will help the company improve the production capacity.

For the first eleven months of 2021, CATL still ranked highest among power battery manufacturers in China with a battery installed capacity of 65.93GWh, which represented 51.4% market share, according to the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance (CAPBIIA).

Prior to the Xiamen project, CATL also announced this year the battery capacity expansion plans in cities including Ningde, Yibin, Zhaoqing, Liyang, Yichun, and Guiyang, which involve a total investment of no more than 60 billion yuan ($9.407 billion).