Electric Loaders in 2023: Running Wildly While Rolling in

If the development of electric loaders in 2022 has been faster than expected, the penetration speed in 2023 can be said to be beyond imagination. It will usher in explosive growth in one year and new entrants will continue to pour in. In this segment that has been generally optimistic in the medium to long term, what have electric loaders experienced this year?

1. Monthly penetration rate exceeded 10%

Statistics from the China Construction Machinery Industry Association show that a total of 3,595 electric loaders were sold from January to December 2023 (17 3-ton units, 2,765 5-ton units, 813 6-ton units), an increase of 2,435 units over the same period in 2022. A surge of 209.9%. Based on a rough estimate of more than 800,000 (yuan) per unit, the total number of 3,595 electric loaders in 2023 has exceeded 3 billion. If you add in the achievements of the new car-making power circle, the actual market capacity will be even larger.

Beginning in January 2023, the sales of electric loaders began to grow significantly, with only a small increase (16.2%) in August. Sales in that month were slightly lower than the same period in 2022. From January to March, the increase was close to 100%, and from April to July, the increase was close to 200%. Starting in September, monthly sales exceeded 400 units for the first time, and the year-on-year growth rate exceeded 500%. In October, the growth rate soared to 603.2%. In November and December Monthly sales exceeded 500 units, with the highest single-month sales volume of 543 units in November.

As the product with the highest electrification penetration rate in the field of earthmoving machinery, the share of electric loader products in the domestic loader market will rise to 6.4% in 2023, compared with 1.4% in the same period in 2022. Looking at a single month, the market share of electric loaders in May 2023 was 5.4%. The penetration rate remained above 10% for three consecutive months in September, October and November. In December, the market share of electric loaders fell slightly to 9.2%. That month, loader sales in the domestic market turned positive for the first time this year, with a year-on-year increase of 8.47%.

Although the growth in sales is affected by the low base factor at the end of 2022, the rapid increase in the penetration rate of electric loaders is real. It is understood that the penetration rate of electric loader products from key companies such as Liugong has reached 15% in 2023. If this momentum is maintained, achieving the small target of 25% in 2025 may not be a problem.

2. On top of the trend, one after another is increasing capacity expansion

Half of the 2023 China Construction Machinery Annual Products TOP50 "New Energy Gold Award" winning products are electric loader products. At present, almost all mainstream manufacturers in the domestic market have launched electric loader products. On top of the trend, companies are vying for layout. The penetration rate of electric loaders is constantly increasing, and the product range is also constantly enriched. At the BICES 2023 exhibition, manufacturers such as Liugong, XCMG, Lingong, Shantui, and XCMG, without exception, exhibited their latest electric loader products. In addition to pure electric products, many battery-powered loaders, electric tow loaders and driverless electric loaders have entered the market.

In addition to the first launch of the 856H unmanned electric loader, Liugong will launch a new smallest model, the 820TE, in 2023. Simultaneously focusing on the aftermarket, Liugong has launched special training camps to improve the service capabilities of Liugong electric loaders in more than 30 provinces and cities across the country. At the same time, it has reached out to agent channels and end customer groups to deepen service capabilities and solutions. LiuGong also serves as the secretariat unit of the Electric Earthmoving Machinery Sub-Technical Committee of the National Earthmoving Machinery Standardization Technical Committee, taking the lead in formulating a number of industry standards.

In 2023, XCMG will further speed up and develop its products and production capacity in both directions. XCMG Loading Machinery Research Institute was established, and a team was specially formed to tackle the electric loader market; a loader intelligent manufacturing demonstration factory was built, and the world's first new energy loader production line was completed and put into operation, building a "technological innovation + value marketing + industrial ecology" business model.

On the other hand, SANY officially launched the Huzhou Loader Industrial Park with an annual production capacity of 30,000 units. In the same year, a large order of 100 units was obtained in Yunnan, and driverless electric loaders were also put into use.

In 2023, Shandong Lingong launched its first modified tow-type electric loader in addition to pure electric loader products; Yingxuan Heavy Industry launched two heavy-duty hybrid loaders, the YX670HEV and the YX660EV-GT pure electric loader. A new product.

In addition to the above-mentioned companies, the promising market prospects of the new energy electric loader market continue to attract more brands and capital from inside and outside the industry. The addition of Taizhong, Yutong, Great Wall Heavy Industries and other brands brings greater room for imagination. In particular, the move of the national team (State Power Investment Co., Ltd. shares Jingong New Energy), as a typical case of the synergy of the upstream and downstream industrial chains, will also bring more possibilities for industrial development. The electric loader market in 2024 may be even more lively.

3. While running wildly, while simultaneously rolling inward

In 2023, electric loaders will enter a period of explosive growth. A person from a northern port predicts that in the next two to three years, the penetration rate of electric loader products in his port is expected to increase from 10% now to 30%, and said that the main problem currently faced is the capacitance of the working surface. Small problem.

At the same time, competition intensity is also intensifying. A channel agent said, “For electric loader products, customers are now proposing three-year installments with no interest, and if you buy two units, you will get a charging pile for free (cost price is between 60,000 and 70,000 yuan) . Although it is not clear whether there are additional terms behind this business policy, this also reflects that the degree of involution in the electrical equipment industry is still intensifying. Some agents revealed that their investment in electric loader products has not increased much after several years. Get your money back.

For main engine manufacturers, electric loaders have high hopes for overtaking in corners, and they intend to seize the high ground first on this new track. The beginning is just like new energy vehicles, trading low prices for the market. After the scale is expanded, the costs will be lowered, and then there will be more room for price reductions. Of course, the premise is that you have strong capital and production capabilities, otherwise you will easily be squeezed out. .

For agents, new energy is also a new track. Some agents believe that "new energy products will continue to be used in field construction operations in the future, which will face big issues. Now there is demand for highways and some mines. The biggest headache for everyone is to meet these demands on the one hand, and on the other hand It is necessary to help customers solve a series of subsequent problems. Among them, basic technical problems can be provided with solutions for customers through self-study, and more importantly, there are financial problems and the standard promotion of new energy products by relevant departments. "

Not only that, the popularization of new energy products including electric loaders will also have a profound impact on agents. Even if there is no price war, as the homogeneity of electric products becomes more and more serious, it is already difficult to earn the price difference by selling equipment. Some insiders believe that "after the popularization of electrification, agents' profit model, which mainly sells equipment and provides services, will definitely change. And follow-up services are likely to be centered on replacement, and the traditional maintenance business volume may increase." Reduction. In addition, the ecology around batteries, such as charging and some auxiliary work, may have greater space in the future."

According to the forecast of the China Construction Machinery Market Research Center, the domestic loader market sales in January 2024 will be around 3,756 units, with a conservative starting price of 500 electric loaders. The domestic electric loader market penetration rate in January will be at least 13%, and the market will continue to be in 2024. Higher, prices continue to involute.

But at the same time, we also see that electrified products are continuing to mature. The State Grid has done a lot of work in capacity layout to solve the problem of electricity consumption. Many companies are doing battery banks to ensure subsequent battery recycling, and the industrial chain supply chain Continuing to improve. In the longer-term future, we will continue to focus on charging, battery life, and experience. The end of electrification will be intelligent and driverless, and the end of "internalization" will be the real test of "internal strength."