Benefiting from the growth of sales of lithium cathode materials and the rapid volume of high nickel products, listed companies of relevant materials continued to expand production and concentrated performance. Following Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) , another lithium cathode material listed company Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) is expected to double its performance in 2021.
Industry insiders previously predicted to the reporter of the securities times · e company that with the cost advantage of upstream raw materials of high nickel ternary batteries over lithium carbonate becoming increasingly prominent, and the overseas nickel and cobalt production capacity will be gradually restored and improved, the price competitive advantage of high nickel ternary materials will be further displayed. On the whole, the listed companies of cathode materials have set off a tide of production expansion, and the penetration rate of high nickel products in the market has been increasing; On the other hand, the upstream and downstream industrial chains speed up the binding.
heavy volume growth of high nickel products
From the perspective of development trend, the penetration of high nickel technology route in the terminal of new energy vehicles has gradually increased, and began to be reflected in the performance of relevant listed companies.
According to the latest performance forecast, Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) it is expected that the net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies will reach 1 billion yuan – 1.05 billion yuan in 2021, an increase of 159.81% – 172.80% over the same period of last year; After deducting non profits, the net profit will reach 740 million yuan – 790 million yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 203.83% – 224.36%, which is expected to exceed the growth rate of net profit.
For the performance growth, Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) said that it mainly benefited from the rapid growth of customers’ demand for the company’s products at home and abroad. After the completion of the company’s new production capacity, it was put into operation at full capacity, and the sales volume of lithium battery cathode materials increased significantly year-on-year; In addition, the company’s high nickel products have achieved rapid and large-scale production, and the overall profitability of the products has been steadily improved. In addition, the company received the payment from BIC and the price of Hunan Zhongke Electric Co.Ltd(300035) shares rose, resulting in an increase in non recurring income.
In contrast, in the first three quarters of last year, Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) has achieved a net profit of 727 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 174.94%. At that time, the performance has reflected the above non recurring income growth; Combined with this performance forecast, the company’s fourth quarter net profit will continue to grow month on month.
Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) the main products of lithium-ion battery materials business include multi-element materials, lithium cobalt oxide and other cathode materials and multi-element precursors. Customers cover the top ten lithium battery giants in the world. In terms of high nickel multi-component materials, Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) has achieved mass production of a variety of single crystal and agglomeration new products. Among them, ni83, ni88 and ni90 high nickel multi-component materials have been exported to overseas in large quantities, becoming a benchmark product for international customers and applied in batch to first-line brand electric vehicles in Japan, South Korea, Europe and the United States.
Peers Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) also expected performance growth a few days ago. The net profit in 2021 is expected to reach 890 million yuan to 920 million yuan, with a pre increase of 317.71% to 331.79% compared with the same period last year. The highest year-on-year growth rate of net profit after deduction will exceed 4 times.
Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) pointed out that driven by the high demand of downstream customers, the company accelerated the release of new production capacity, doubled its annual sales year-on-year, and continued to maintain a leading position in China’s ternary cathode material market. At the same time, the profitability of the company’s products continued to improve, and the product structure was gradually optimized. The shipment volume of high nickel polycrystalline products maintained a leading position in the market, and the proportion of single crystal high energy density products and ultra-high nickel products above 9 series increased.
At the recent performance presentation meeting, Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) executives further said that high nickel and lithium iron will be the two main directions of electric vehicles in the future. At present, from the company’s orders in hand, the recognition of European and American car enterprises for high nickel is still very high, and the growth rate of high nickel is relatively obvious. The main models of mainstream automobile enterprises in the international market are high nickel routes. Considering that the application of high nickel ternary in higher energy density, higher cost performance materials, as well as solid-state batteries and 4680 batteries will enhance its competitive advantage, it is expected that the competitive advantage will be significantly improved in 2023.
Insiders previously pointed out to the reporter of the securities times · e company that the price of lithium carbonate, the raw material of lithium iron phosphate battery, has begun to exceed the price of lithium hydroxide, the raw material of high nickel ternary battery, and the cost advantage of the latter will be highlighted. This year, the overseas nickel and cobalt production capacity will be gradually restored and improved, and the price competitive advantage of high nickel ternary material will be gradually reflected.
In addition, in the long run, lithium iron phosphate and ternary technology will coexist for a long time to match different market needs. With the promotion of intelligent electric vehicles, the energy density requirements will be further improved. It is expected that the ternary battery will develop towards the trend of “high nickel and low cobalt” in the future.
accelerated expansion of cathode materials
According to incomplete statistics of trendforce Jibang consulting, there will be more than 50 lithium battery cathode material expansion projects in China in 2021. It is expected that the global demand for cathode material of power lithium battery will exceed 2.15 million tons by 2025. If energy storage, consumer electronics and other fields are added, the demand for cathode material may exceed 3.6 million tons. Related listed companies have set off a wave of fund-raising and production expansion.
As a leader in cathode materials, Xtc New Energy Materials( Xiamen) Co.Ltd(688778) raised about 1.4 billion yuan through IPO last year to invest in the industrialization project of lithium battery materials with an annual output of 40000 tons; In addition, last December, Xtc New Energy Materials( Xiamen) Co.Ltd(688778) disclosed that it invested nearly 1 billion yuan with its own funds to expand the production of 30000 tons of lithium-ion battery cathode materials. It is expected that after the project is completed, the production capacity of Haijing base of the company will reach an annual output of 70000 tons of lithium battery cathode materials. At the same time, the company plans to invest in the lithium iron phosphate production line with an annual output of 100000 tons by stages through a joint venture, with a total investment of 930 million yuan.
Xtc New Energy Materials( Xiamen) Co.Ltd(688778) said that the downstream customers of the company have increasing demand for ternary cathode materials, especially high nickel cathode materials. In order to meet the rapidly growing needs of customers and take into account the long certification cycle of vehicle materials products, it is necessary for the company to expand the existing production capacity in time and upgrade and innovate the products to meet the requirements of the industrialization development of new energy vehicles.
Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) last year, it also implemented fixed increase to the major shareholder mining and metallurgy group and other objects, and completed the fund-raising of about 4.645 billion yuan to invest in the phase II project of Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) (Changzhou) lithium battery new material industry base and the phase IV Project of Jiangsu dangsheng lithium battery cathode material production base. Among them, Changzhou lithium new materials phase II project plans to obtain the largest amount of raised investment, about 2 billion yuan, for the construction of 50000 T / a high nickel lithium battery cathode material production line, and phase IV project plans to build 20000 t / a digital cathode material production line.
Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) it is estimated that the company will have a capacity of 44000 tons by the end of 2021. According to the capacity planning, the capacity is expected to exceed 109000 tons by 2025; In terms of overseas capacity layout, the company has started the research and demonstration of the European 100000 ton high nickel power cathode material production base project. However, the company said that enterprises in the cathode material industry have expanded their production capacity, resulting in low-end overcapacity but serious shortage of high-end capacity.
According to the executives of Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) , the company’s production capacity reached 120000 tons / year by the end of 2021. It is expected that the production capacity will be released in the first quarter of this year, and the production capacity in the first quarter of 2022 will be increased compared with the fourth quarter of 2021.
With the double increase of production and sales volume, the scale effect is driven, which promotes the cost reduction and efficiency increase of manufacturing links; The company strengthened the strategic procurement layout of raw materials to reduce the cost of the supply chain.
bind upstream and downstream industrial chains
From the technical point of view, the core technology of ternary materials is precursor synthesis. Therefore, listed companies of relevant materials have also bound precursor suppliers and even jointly invested in upstream nickel mines.
Last November, Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) and Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co.Ltd(603799) signed a strategic cooperation agreement to purchase 300000-350000 tons of ternary precursors from the latter from 2022 to 2025; Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) has also reached cooperation with Cngr Advanced Material Co.Ltd(300919) to bind the supply and demand of 200000-330000 tons of relevant precursors in the next three years, and jointly invest in 300000 tons / year iron phosphate project and Indonesia laterite nickel mine project.
Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co.Ltd(603799) and agreed that the precursor procurement volume of Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) in Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co.Ltd(603799) will not be less than 180000 tons from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2025. Under the condition that Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co.Ltd(603799) provides Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) with a competitive pricing method of metal raw materials and precursor processing fee, both parties expect the procurement volume of precursors to reach 415000 tons.
The executives of Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) also further pointed out in the survey that the company’s precursor sector has been arranged in terms of customer development, product R & D and engineering construction, and the proportion of self supply of precursors has increased by about 30% year-on-year. On the whole, at the supply chain end, the company has made layout in terms of precursors, lithium salts and upstream metals, and has obtained some long-term stable and low price orders.
Xtc New Energy Materials( Xiamen) Co.Ltd(688778) also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Zhejiang PavA new energy Co., Ltd. at the end of last year. It is expected that the supply and demand of ternary precursors will reach 40000-70000 tons from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2024; In September last year, the company also reached an agreement with Cngr Advanced Material Co.Ltd(300919) that the supply and demand of Co3O4 products of both parties will be about 20000-25000 tons / year by 2023; The supply and demand of ternary precursor products is about 15000-35000 tons / year.
Cathode material listed companies have also bound downstream customers.
Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Beijing Weilan New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. in December last year. From 2022 to 2025, the two sides will purchase no less than 25000 tons of solid-state lithium battery materials from Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.Ltd(300073) . The two sides will also strengthen exchanges and cooperation in cutting-edge lithium battery technologies such as high nickel multi-element materials, lithium rich manganese based materials, lithium cobalt oxide, lithium iron phosphate and lithium manganese iron phosphate.
As the leader of lithium battery, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.Limited(300750) began to shift the upstream supply of high nickel ternary materials to centralized procurement.
Recently Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.Limited(300750) reached cooperation: it is estimated that Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.Limited(300750) will purchase about 100000 tons of high nickel ternary cathode materials from Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) in 2022; From 2023 to the end of 2025, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.Limited(300750) will take Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) as its first supplier of ternary cathode powder, and purchase no less than a certain proportion of high nickel ternary cathode materials from Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) .
It is reported that due to the close binding between high nickel and terminal, the order is highly deterministic. Based on the long-term cooperative relationship in the early stage, the two sides have jointly carried out the directional development and certification of a large number of models. The strategic cooperation between the two sides is not limited to the supply agreement. In terms of technical cooperation, in the direction of higher energy density, Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology Co.Ltd(688005) is supporting the development of ultra-high nickel cathode materials, which will give play to the advantages of high nickel products. On the low-cost route, the company will cooperate with the development of energy storage and sodium ion technology.
