CATL warns: US cannot have EVs without China and predicts change by 2028

Robin Zeng, founder and chairman of CATL, stated in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that the protectionist measures adopted by the US to curb Chinese EVs and batteries could harm the American automotive industry in the long run.

In conversation with the WSJ, Zeng, one of China's richest men, said that the American EV market is at risk without CATL. He points out that US policy may change by 2028, when commercial interests are expected to prevail.

CATL recorded record profit above US$ 10 billion in 2025, and estimates that approximately one-third of EVs sold globally use its batteries. This achievement occurred even without a significant presence in the US market, where EV adoption is slower.

There are signs that automakers are already turning to CATL in the US. Ford switched from SK Group as a partner for battery projects, with plans to manufacture LFP batteries developed by CATL in a new plant in Michigan. Ford pays intellectual property royalties to CATL to enable the technology.

Furthermore, Ford uses CATL's LFP technology for stationary storage batteries in a new factory in Kentucky, with an investment of 5.8 billion dollars. GM, on the other hand, uses CATL's LFP batteries in the 2027 Bolt, imported from China under a temporary arrangement that keeps the price low until domestic production is prepared. GM also operates two large battery plants in the US, but these currently remain idle.

Tesla also uses CATL technology in an energy storage facility in Nevada.

What might change by 2028

While critics argue that CATL's presence in the US supply chain could put the company in a dominant position, cooperation advocates affirm that partnership is essential to reduce costs and make EVs more accessible in the US.

Zeng stated that CATL is willing to invest in the US, but for now, it cannot build factories in the country. He adds that changes may arrive in 2028, the last full year of President Donald Trump's second term, as trade relations tend to outweigh political decisions.

Impact for the sector and the future

With a profit exceeding US$ 10 billion in 2025, CATL remains a key component in the global battery chain, with estimates that about one-third of EVs sold globally used its batteries.

CATL's presence in the US fuels debates between those who advocate for cooperation to reduce costs and those who defend protections for domestic assembly chains.

What is your reading on CATL's role in US EVs? Do you believe the change in stance by 2028 is real and that the country may increasingly depend on Chinese suppliers for batteries? Leave your opinion in the comments.