On March 17, Yongxing Special Materials Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Yongxing Materials") released the main operating data from January to February this year. The net profit of shareholders of listed companies was 490 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 650%.

This is the fifth lithium battery material listed company to voluntarily disclose the performance of the first two months since March. Like Yongxing Materials, driven by the demand for new energy vehicles, the demand for lithium salts such as lithium carbonate and lithium iron phosphate has increased significantly, including Ganfeng Lithium Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Ganfeng Lithium"), Tianqi Many lithium battery material companies, including Lithium Industry Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Tianqi Lithium Industry") and Guangzhou Tinci High-tech Materials Co., Ltd., are booming.

Production and sales are booming, the stock market is booming

Public information shows that from January to February, Yongxing Materials’ lithium battery new energy business achieved operating income of about 620 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 670%, and a net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies of about 420 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 3700%. The operating income of Yongxing Materials' lithium battery new energy business accounts for about 40%, and the net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies accounts for as high as 85.7%, which has become an important factor for the company's performance.

The sales volume of Ganfeng Lithium, whose main products are lithium raw materials and lithium compounds, also increased year-on-year. From January to February, the company achieved an operating income of about 3.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 260%, and realized a net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company of about 1.4 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 300%.

The surge in market demand for lithium battery materials has driven Tianqi Lithium to turn losses into profits. In 2021, Tianqi Lithium is expected to achieve a net profit of 1.8 billion to 2.4 billion yuan attributable to shareholders of listed companies, while the company will lose 1.834 billion yuan in 2020. This year, under the background of the hot new energy vehicle industry, the performance of Tianqi Lithium continued to rise. From January to February, Tianqi Lithium's lithium concentrate production increased by about 39% year-on-year, and its sales volume increased by about 56% year-on-year. It is expected that the operating income of lithium concentrate will increase by about 366% year-on-year. The company expects lithium compounds and their derivatives operating income to increase by approximately 492% year-on-year.

The main business has performed well, and the listed companies of lithium battery materials are also well recognized in the secondary market. Taking Tianqi Lithium as an example, the company's stock price has risen from the lowest point of 18.45 yuan per share on March 31, 2020, to a historical record of 143.17 yuan per share on August 31, 2021. As of the close on March 17, Tianqi Lithium's stock price was 85.19 yuan per share, still maintaining a relatively high level overall.

In the context of steady growth in performance and good secondary market performance, Tianqi Lithium is seeking a new round of financing. In January this year, Tianqi Lithium submitted a listing application to the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. If it successfully landed, Tianqi Lithium will become the first lithium battery raw material company to be listed on both A-shares and H-shares.

Demand is bullish, prices are soaring

In Ganfeng Lithium's view, the substantial growth in the company's performance is due to the rapid development of the new energy vehicle industry and the soaring demand for lithium battery materials from downstream customers. At the same time, under the above background, the sales prices of the company's main products have risen significantly, the superimposed sales volume has increased, and the company's operating income and net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies have increased.

Recently, the monthly power battery data for February 2022 released by the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance showed that the installed capacity of power batteries in my country reached 13.7 million kWh, a year-on-year increase of 145.1%, and continued to maintain a steady growth trend. From January to February, the installed capacity of power batteries in my country was 29.9 million kWh, a year-on-year increase of 109.7%, equivalent to 61% of the output of power batteries in 2020. With the continuous increase in the number of vehicles installed, the production of power batteries has also continued to increase. In February, my country's power battery output totaled 31.8 million kWh, a year-on-year increase of 236.2%. From January to February, my country's power battery output totaled 61.4 million kWh, a year-on-year increase of 185.7%.

Market demand is higher, and lithium battery materials have continued their violent gains since late 2020. Lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide and lithium hexafluorophosphate and other materials are in short supply and prices have risen sharply, becoming the "sweet pastry" in the industry, driving the operating income of related companies and the net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies to rise year-on-year.

The reporter checked the data released by the commodity price monitoring agency Sunshine and found that as of March 17, the price of battery-grade lithium carbonate was about 520,000 yuan/ton, and the price of battery-grade lithium hydroxide was about 470,000 yuan/ton, a record high. , nearly doubled the prices of 270,000 yuan/ton and 220,000 yuan/ton on January 1, ushering in a new round of price hikes.

Zheshang Securities pointed out in the research report that the supply of lithium resources is limited in the short term. It is estimated that by 2025, the global supply of lithium resources will be about 1.42 million tons, the demand will be 1.51 million tons, and the supply gap will reach 90,000 tons. In the future, lithium resources will still be in short supply, which will prompt the price of lithium compounds to continue to rise.

Seize the opportunity to expand production through financing

According to statistics from the Lithium Industry Branch of the China Nonferrous Metals Association, my country's lithium carbonate output in 2021 will be 298,200 tons, a year-on-year increase of 59.47%, and lithium hydroxide output will reach 190,300 tons, a year-on-year increase of 105%. my country has become the world's largest basic lithium battery Material producing and consuming countries.

In order to meet the rapidly growing market demand, lithium battery material companies such as Tianqi Lithium are expanding production. At present, Tianqi Lithium has a total production capacity of about 44,800 tons/year of lithium chemical products, of which the production capacity of lithium carbonate is 34,500 tons/year, and the production capacity of lithium hydroxide is 5,000 tons/year. In addition, Tianqi Lithium also has 48,000 tons/year lithium hydroxide and 20,000 tons/year battery-grade lithium carbonate projects under construction, of which the 24,000-ton lithium hydroxide project strives to reach production in the fourth quarter of this year.

Sinolink Securities pointed out in the research report that with the launch of new production capacity, the supply of lithium battery materials will increase slightly, but it will still maintain a tight balance, and the industrial boom cycle will continue until 2023. Another analysis believes that with the completion of the maintenance of some lithium battery material companies and the successive commissioning of new production capacity, the price increase of lithium battery materials will narrow.

It is understood that as of now, downstream companies have completed large-scale purchases, and it is expected that the price of lithium battery materials will remain stable. Huafu Securities analyst Lin Rongyun said in the weekly report of the power equipment and new energy industry that since February, the price of lithium carbonate has risen rapidly, from 380,000 yuan / ton to 500,000 yuan / ton, and the price is expected to be revised in the future.

According to the data of the business society, since March, the price of battery-grade lithium carbonate has not changed much, basically maintaining at about 500,000 yuan / ton, and the upward trend has been suspended. In addition, some lithium battery material companies have stopped making external quotations.

In recent years, the price of lithium battery materials has fluctuated greatly, and the cycle is more obvious. Since 2018, due to the oversupply and weakening downstream market demand, the price of lithium carbonate has fallen for a while, and it fell to the lowest level of 43,000 yuan/ton in 2020, and then suddenly surged. The current round of price hikes for lithium battery materials has not stopped, and related companies are seizing the opportunity to raise funds and expand production, hoping to enhance their competitiveness