SHANGHAI, May 10 (SMM) – The average operating rate across licensed smelters of secondary lead across Anhui, Henan and Jiangsu province climbed 3.47% from the week ended April 26 to stand at 51.31% in the week through May 10, SMM data showed.

Anhui, Henan and Jiangsu are the top three hubs for secondary lead production, with 38.9% of combined capacity.

Smelters in Anhui operated at 41.31% this week, up 9.18 percentage points from the week before the holiday, as Huabo project’s second stage ramped up and as Huaxin recovered to daily output of 100-200 mt from the start of May. The restart of the second production line at Huabo’s first stage, however, was delayed.

Operating rates across smelters in Henan gained 7.77 percentage points to 65.83%, as Jiyuan Jinli put a new production line into trial operation. The new line can process up to 800 mt of battery scrap per day.

With Xinchunxing receiving fewer orders amid weak consumption, the average operating rate across smelters in Jiangsu fell 2 percentage points to 50% this week. Huaxiang, awaiting results of an environmental check, plans to resume later this month.