Ganfeng Lithium Power Battery has been tested on the first generation solid-state battery design capacity 0.3GWH.

Recently, Ganfeng Lithium Industry (002460) held an annual performance presentation meeting for 2020, and the company answered questions of general concern to investors according to its operating situation, financial situation and future development plans.

Among them, in terms of project progress, Ganfeng Lithium Industry 10,000 tons lithium salt expansion project trial production in the fourth quarter of 2020, the current capacity climbing smoothly; Argentina Cauchari-O laroz (brine) project is expected to delay production until the first half of 2022, the design capacity of 40,000 tons of battery-grade lithium carbonate; Mexico Sonora lithium clay project company has completed lithium clay technology and technology certification, is actively promoting production line design.

In terms of battery plate, at present, Ganfeng lithium industry power battery has been tested on some models; the first generation solid state battery has done a pilot test line with a design capacity of 0.3GWH; the second generation solid state battery second generation solid state battery is based on high nickel ternary cathode and metal lithium anode material, with an energy density of more than 350KWHR KG and 400 cycles.

In terms of battery recycling plate, Ganfeng Recycling Technology's decommissioned lithium battery disassembly and metal comprehensive recovery project has formed a recycling capacity of 34000 tons, helping enterprises to establish a lithium product recycling ecological chain and further improve the company's industrial chain layout.

The main questions and responses are as follows:

Q: lithium metal has always been a niche lithium product market with tight balance between supply and demand. Why did your company suddenly expand its production of 7000 tons of lithium metal project? is there any demand or intention to order downstream in the next few years?

A: the company plans to invest 7000 tons of metal lithium and lithium materials projects, including metal lithium smelting, lithium series alloys, solid-state lithium battery anode materials and other production lines. With the continuous application of solid-state lithium batteries in the new energy vehicle industry, the demand for lithium metal is expected to show explosive growth.

Q: has there been an increase in the number of lithium products that Ganfeng has supplied to Tesla since the beginning of this year? Does Tesla sign supply contracts with other Chinese lithium companies a few months ago? does this affect the cooperation between Gan Feng and Tesla?

A: Tesla is one of the company's main customers. The two sides have always maintained a good cooperative relationship. The signing of supply contracts between Tesla and other lithium companies will not affect the cooperation between the two sides.

Q: how do you think Ganfeng Lithium has boosted its net profit by relying on the rise in the share price of Pilbara in the past year? When will overseas business bring profits to the company?

The share price of A:Pilbara rises due to the increase in demand for lithium, and the equity held by our company is calculated at fair value, resulting in income from changes in fair value, resulting in an increase in net profit; the company has been operating around the main business and does not rely on the changes in the share price of Pilbara; the company will strive to promote the production of overseas investment projects to produce benefits and return to investors as soon as possible.

Q: the Cauchari-O laroz Lithium Salt Lake project in Argentina was affected by the novel coronavirus epidemic last year. Is it expected to be completed within this year? How long will it take to reach full capacity in the process of capacity climbing?

A: Argentina's Cauchari-O laroz (brine) project was affected by the epidemic, and the project was delayed mainly by personnel flow restrictions. Production is expected to be postponed to the first half of 2022, with a designed capacity of 40, 000 tons of battery-grade lithium carbonate. After putting into production, the company will accelerate the climbing of production capacity and strive to reach full production as soon as possible!

Q: what is the impact of the development of hydrogen energy vehicles on the development of lithium electric battery vehicles?

A: at present, the most mature technical route of new energy vehicles and has been large-scale industrialization of the technical route is the lithium-ion power battery route, hydrogen energy vehicles have not yet achieved large-scale industrial application. We believe that it is possible for all kinds of technical routes to coexist and complement each other in the field of new energy vehicles.

Q: at present, is the process of extracting lithium from lithium clay mature or is it still in the stage of laboratory research and development optimization? About when will it be put into actual production?

A: the Sonora lithium clay project in Mexico has the advantages of large amount of resources, easy to extract and high efficiency of lithium extraction. It can not only complete the lithium extraction process in a short time at the speed similar to that of ore extraction, but also complete lithium extraction at a lower cost at a cost similar to that of brine. At present, the company has completed the certification of lithium clay technology and technology, and is actively promoting the design of the production line.

Q: what is the current market demand for lithium compounds? Is the company still in short supply? Will Chile's blockade of the country until May aggravate the shortage of lithium supply in the world, especially in China?

A: the company's lithium compound products are rich in downstream application scenarios, and the company will organize production and sales according to the changes in the technical level and market demand of the downstream market. Since seaborne shipments to Chile have not been affected, Chilean lock-in has little impact on sales.

Q: lithium prices rose rapidly at the beginning of this year. What is the company's view on the future trend of lithium prices?

A: the price change of lithium products is mainly affected by the balance of supply and demand in the market. As the continuous supervision and recommendation agency of Ganfeng lithium industry, we will always assist the company to pay attention to the price trend of lithium products and timely remind the company of the risk of market changes in upstream and downstream products.

Q: solid state is very difficult. Over the past few years, there has been a lot of investment in R & D and materials. Researchers should work very hard and must continue to work hard. The commanding heights of the world, the important task that a generation should shoulder, and more efforts, there is no time for us.

A: solid-state lithium battery has multiple advantages such as lighter weight, better safety and higher specific capacity, so it is not only the mainstream direction of lithium power battery development in the future, but also the direction of Ganfeng lithium researchers' efforts, thank you for your encouragement!

Q: the reason why there is a big gap between the company's design capacity and the effective capacity, can the main factors restricting the production capacity be solved, and when can the design capacity be reached?

A: generally speaking, the designed production capacity of the production line is the theoretical output level that can be achieved by operating at full load in the year, and the effective production capacity is the actual production capacity level realized in the current year. Since not all production lines are fully built at the beginning of each year, there is a process of gradually releasing capacity, so the actual effective capacity in that year is not the capacity in the case of full production throughout the year. In addition, as the production line needs to be overhauled and upgraded within a fixed period of time, it will also lead to changes in effective production capacity to a certain extent.

Q: what is the level of the company's lithium resources development cost? Does it have any advantages compared with Tianqi Lithium Industry and other companies?

A: the company attaches great importance to the layout of upstream lithium resources and has various forms of lithium raw material development resources in China. The company has ploughed lithium ecological industry system for 20 years, has rich management experience and technology accumulation, and is in an industry leading position in cost control.

Q: many companies mainly recycle cobalt and nickel from waste lithium batteries, not lithium. Is the recovery of Ganfeng lithium battery mainly lithium? Is there any other company working on recycling lithium? Compared with recovering cobalt and nickel, is it technically difficult to recover lithium? Or is it not economical? With the completion of low-cost mines, will waste batteries become an important source of lithium resources in the future?

A: with the gradual promotion of new energy vehicles, the waste batteries decommissioned from cars in the future will become an important source of lithium resources. Ganfeng Recycling Technology's decommissioned lithium battery disassembly and metal comprehensive recovery project has formed a recovery capacity of 34000 tons, helping enterprises to establish a lithium product recycling ecological chain and further improve the company's industrial chain layout.

Q: the company's current lithium resources, the latest.

A: the company currently has 8 high-quality lithium resources directly or indirectly around the world. Owns 50% interest in Mount Marion spodumene mine in Australia, 6.33% interest in, Pilbara Pilgangoora spodumene mine, 51% interest in Cauchari-O laroz lithium salt lake in Argentina, 88.75% interest in Mariana lithium salt lake, 50% interest in Sonora lithium clay in Mexico, and 55% interest in Avalonia spodumene mine in Ireland. In China, it has 100% rights and interests in Ningdu Heyuan spodumene Mine and Fenghuangtai Deep Brine Lithium Mine in Qinghai Mangya Committee.

Q: have the company's power batteries been successfully loaded so far (passenger cars or passenger cars)?

A: the company's power batteries are tested on some models.

Q: is the smelting of lithium metal more difficult than that of lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide? Or is the product threshold of lithium metal higher than that of lithium hydroxide?

A: because of the special properties of lithium metal, the requirement of safety in production is very high.

Q: what are the company's major domestic and overseas customers? For example, domestic words Ningde era, BYD, Guoxuan Tech, overseas words Tesla, Volkswagen, BMW, LG Chemistry, Samsung SDI, Panasonic and so on.

A: the manufacturers you listed are all direct or indirect customers of our company.

Q: whether it is Ofeiguang or Lixun Precision in Apple's industrial chain, it is difficult to take the initiative to order or cut orders as a member of the supply chain. In the future, whether Tesla or Volkswagen, all members of the industrial chain will face this problem sooner or later, especially Tesla's speed of innovation, so whether the company's R & D investment in lithium salt or batteries can be doubled without dividends, take the bonus money to increase research and development.

A: we should not only increase investment in research and development, but also give shareholders a reasonable return on dividends. Thank you for your trust and understanding!

Q: how is the cooperation negotiation between the company and German Volkswagen going? I hope I can talk about it in more detail!

A: the cooperation negotiations between the company and Volkswagen are progressing normally, please pay attention to the follow-up announcement of the company.

Q: what is the pricing strategy for the supply to key customers this year? What about the supply?

A: the pricing strategy of the company and key customers is adjusted according to the market price, and the supply is tight.

Q: does the company have any market share targets in power batteries, 3C batteries, TWS batteries, power tools batteries, energy storage batteries and other business segments?

A: lithium-ion battery is an important part of the company's lithium ecosystem layout, the company will actively promote the development of lithium battery business and strive to be in the forefront of the industry.

Q: could you tell me the current progress of the 10,000-ton lithium salt transformation and expansion project?

A: the 10,000-ton lithium salt transformation and expansion project was trial-produced in the fourth quarter of 2020, and the current production capacity is climbing smoothly.

Q: what is the impact of the current shortage of resources on the company? What are the plans and countermeasures in the later stage?

A: at present, the company has 8 high-quality lithium resources worldwide, and the company continues to seek high-quality lithium resources to ensure the company's sustained and stable production.

Q: the company has calculated the industry average, what is the proportion of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate to the total cost of high-nickel ternary and lithium iron phosphate batteries, respectively?

A: lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate are the main raw materials of high nickel ternary battery and lithium iron phosphate battery. The proportion of the total cost varies according to the performance of the battery and the production process of different manufacturers.

Q: there is a lot of space in the battery recycling market. What layout does the company do in the battery recycling business?

A: the company promotes the industrial technology level and competitive advantage by expanding the capacity of decommissioned lithium battery recycling business and developing new technologies and technologies for comprehensive recycling of decommissioned lithium batteries. Recycling Technology, a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, was selected into the second batch of "Industry Standard conditions for Comprehensive Utilization of waste Power batteries for New Energy vehicles" by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in 2020. The decommissioned lithium battery disassembly and metal comprehensive recovery project of recycling technology has formed a recycling capacity of 34000 tons, helping enterprises to establish a lithium product recycling ecological chain and further improving the layout of the company's industrial chain.

Q: does the company have significant advantages in the technology of extracting lithium from brine? In addition, if Mexican clay is calcined, will it have an adverse impact on the customer's investigation of the carbon footprint?

A: the company leads the industry in lithium extraction technology, and the company has mastered the technology of extracting lithium from brine a long time ago. For the progress of the lithium clay project in Mexico, please refer to the announcement disclosed by the company.

Q: what is the current production capacity and capacity utilization of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate?

A: for the capacity and utilization of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate, please refer to the relevant contents of the company's annual report in 2020.

Q: is the production barrier of lithium metal higher than that of lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide? In addition, how long does the average cycle of metal lithium production line construction take?

A: the production barriers of metal lithium are mainly reflected in the supply of raw materials, process technology and so on. The construction cycle of metal lithium production line is affected by production capacity, design planning and so on.

Q: how much LCE? does a ternary battery need per 1GWH

A: due to the different technical routes and process progress of ternary batteries, there is a dynamic process of lithium demand per GW. At present, it is about 760-770t per GW.

Q: when will the company's solid-state battery be ready for mass production and loading?

A: the company's first-generation solid-state battery has made a pilot test line with a design capacity of 0.3GWH at present. The second generation solid-state battery the second generation solid-state lithium battery is based on high-nickel ternary cathode and metal-containing lithium anode material, with an energy density of more than 350KWH / KG and 400 cycles. The company will actively promote the mass production and loading of solid-state batteries, and the specific progress shall be subject to the announcement disclosed by the company.

Q: are there any interested strategic investors in your battery sector? Is there a specific schedule for the spin-off and listing of the battery plate?

A: battery plate is an important business segment of Ganfeng lithium industry. At present, employee stock ownership platform has been introduced. I believe that with the joint efforts of everyone, the work of battery plate will be better and better.

Q: when will lithium carbonate be in excess supply?

A: lithium carbonate products are currently rich in application scenarios, especially in the field of lithium batteries. As a sponsor under the continuous supervision of the company, we will continue to pay attention to the changes in market demand and product supply of such products. Provide constructive advice and support for the company!

Q: what is the company's judgment on the price of lithium carbonate in 2020 and the layout planning of the upstream lithium resources of the company?

A: the price changes of lithium carbonate products produced by the company are mainly affected by the fluctuation of market demand in downstream application scenarios and the overall supply of lithium carbonate products, and the company will pay close attention to the above changes and adjust its business strategy in a timely manner; the company's layout of upstream lithium resources can be found in the company's annual report disclosed by the company.

Q: what is the ton cost of the company's lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate products in 2020? How to calculate the proportion of raw materials and processing fees?

A: the proportion of the company's product costs, raw materials and processing fees refer to the 2020 annual report.

Q: does your company have any plans to build lithium salt production facilities in Western Australia? Compared with the layout of Tianqi lithium industry, will it be more advantageous to build processing facilities in mineral land?

A: considering the strategic layout, the political and economic environment of the mining areas, the reserve of human resources and other conditions, the company will fully demonstrate the feasibility of building factories overseas.

Q: the company has planned more than 1000 employees of one million. At present, it can see about 500. how can the remaining 500-plus people be implemented?

A: "Building ten billionaires, 100 multimillionaires and thousands of millionaires" is the company's commitment to employees and the company's determination to lead employees to become rich together. We hope that everyone can make a difference on the platform provided by Ganfeng Lithium Industry, achieve career success, and become a member of millions, tens of millions or even hundreds of millions.

Q: what do you think of the company's current stock price? Do you think it is undervalued, reasonable or overestimated? What is your vision for the long-term development of the company?

A: the company believes that the new energy strategy has great potential and is full of confidence in the sustained growth of future performance! The company will further do a good job in all kinds of operation and management, strive to improve the company's performance, and strive to return greater value to investors!