Namibia’s Andrada delivers on early promise【SMM Analysis】

[SMM Daily Review: Spot Lithium Carbonate Prices Unchanged on August 4] Today, SMM battery-grade spot lithium carbonate prices remained flat from the previous working day. The lithium carbonate 2609 contract opened lower at 138,800 yuan/mt today, fluctuated lower and quickly dipped, hitting a low of 137,300 yuan/mt. Subsequently, bulls stepped in, pushing prices to rebound quickly, and in the morning session, prices shot up to around 141,400 yuan/mt. Around midday, bulls and bears wrestled repeatedly in the 139,500–141,400 yuan/mt range, during which prices shot up to 141,400 yuan/mt twice but were met with selling pressure from bears each time. In the afternoon, prices pulled back amid consolidation, and in late trading, moved sideways within the 139,300–139,500 yuan/mt range. It eventually closed up 0.84% at 139,400 yuan/mt, with open interest declining by 8,337 lots. In the spot market, downstream material plants made just-in-time procurement on price dips. Inquiries were relatively active, but actual transactions showed a slowdown. Upstream spot orders continued to hold prices firm, and at the beginning of the month, deliveries were mainly based on long-term contracts. Overall, market transactions were relatively sluggish.

[SMM Analysis] Demand in the LFP industry chain continues to rise, but the supply-side response is significantly lagging behind. The most notable feature of the current market is that tight supply is rapidly transmitting from bottom to top, forming a sequential inversion of "battery cell production schedule > LFP cathode production schedule > iron phosphate production schedule." The slow release of LFP capacity and the iron phosphate industry segment have become the most prominent bottlenecks in the entire chain.

On August 3, Ronbay Technology stated during a survey that the company’s 340,000 mt/year LFP project at its Guizhou base is being accelerated and is expected to reach full capacity by the end of September. In H2, the company will focus on ramping up production lines, client acceptance, and order delivery to quickly achieve stable production. In the future, the company will advance capacity deployment in China and overseas based on client demand, market changes, and project implementation conditions, further leveraging the industrialisation value of its one-step technology. Specific plans will comply with relevant information disclosure obligations.