[Na-ion: Shenhuo Group Breaks Ground on 50,000t/yr Sodium Battery Foil Project]

[SMM Analysis: Sodium-ion Batteries Written into the "Strengthening" List in the 15th Five-Year Plan: One Policy, Three Accounts] SMM, September 18: On September 15, the MIIT and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) jointly issued the "15th Five-Year Plan for the Development of the Electronic Information Manufacturing Industry." Most market attention was drawn to two aggregate figures—by 2030, revenue of enterprises above designated size is expected to exceed 30 trillion yuan, and R&D intensity is expected to reach 3.5%. However, in SMM's view, what truly carries information for the sodium-ion battery industry chain is the statement of less than 100 words in the "New-type Battery" column: ......R&D and industrialisation of low-cost, long-life sodium-ion batteries.

The cobalt industry chain remained under pressure this week. Refined cobalt shot up and then pulled back amid phased purchasing, with the electronic trading price retreating from 289,000 yuan/mt to around 275,000 yuan/mt. Quotes and transactions for intermediate products remained absent, and sales pressure on miners gradually accumulated. Cobalt salt demand was weak, and cobalt sulphate fell into a negative feedback loop of "price cuts—losses—raw material declines—lower costs," with some recycled-source quotes dropping to 57,000–58,000 yuan/mt. Cobalt chloride and Co3O4 continued to weaken under downstream production cuts and sluggish end-use consumption. Cobalt powder downstream users were still digesting high-priced inventory, and new purchasing had yet to begin. Ternary cathode precursor and ternary cathode material prices fell along with nickel, cobalt, and lithium raw materials, with sluggish power demand prompting enterprises to turn cautious in quoting and purchasing. LCO's "September peak season" expectations fell through, with weakening cost support and insufficient end-user stockpiling, leaving short-term prices still at risk of further decline. Some enterprises may carry out small-scale stockpiling before the National Day holiday, but whether the industry chain can stabilize still depends on the recovery of end-use demand and the pace of inventory destocking.

[SMM Analysis: NaPF6: The "Key Ingredient" in Sodium-Ion Battery Electrolyte - What Exactly Is It?] SMM, September 17: In the new energy circle, "LiPF6" is almost universally known - it is the "soul raw material" of lithium battery electrolyte, indispensable. However, over the past two years, as the industrialisation of sodium-ion batteries has accelerated, its "sodium salt sibling" - NaPF6 - has begun to appear frequently in industry chain discussions. As a fellow member of the "hexafluorophosphate" family, NaPF6 is younger and more niche than LiPF6, yet it is expected to replicate or even surpass LiPF6's industrial standing...