Citic Securities: the global penetration rate of new energy vehicles is expected to be close to 20% in 2025.

Published: Jul 22, 2021 16:17

Citic Securities said that new energy vehicles have leapfrogged from subsidy-driven to market-driven, and have entered a stage of rapid growth, and the global economy has continued to resonate, especially with the sharp increase in penetration in China and Europe and the resumption of electrification in the United States.

In the medium to long term, the global penetration rate of new energy vehicles is expected to be close to 20% in 2025. From a global perspective, China's electrified supply chain is developing rapidly and is the most perfect, with the advantages of production capacity, technology, cost and customers, and a large number of suppliers have been matched globally. It is expected that the industry growth dividend will be fully enjoyed, highlighting the value of global high-quality manufacturing assets.

At present, some companies in the industrial chain have high valuations, but driven by the outbreak of downstream demand, the performance growth and certainty of high-quality enterprises in the relevant links of the supply chain are very high, and high valuations are expected to be quickly digested in the future. We will continue to recommend high-quality enterprises in the new energy automobile supply chain with global competitiveness, especially Tesla, Ningde era, LG Chemical and other supply chains.

Domestic downstream: the growth of high-quality supply is accelerating, short-term sales continue to exceed expectations, and medium-and long-term growth is clear.

In the short term, the growth rate of new energy vehicle sales has changed from 3Q2020 to regular, and has continued to grow at a high rate, with 3Q20/4Q20/1Q21/2Q21 growth of + 41%, 82%, 359% and 92%, respectively. We have raised our annual sales forecast for 2021 from 2.49 million to 2.83 million, a year-on-year increase of + 121%. In the medium and long term, new energy vehicles have leapfrogged from subsidy-driven to market-driven, and have entered a stage of rapid growth. Driven by policy support and the supply of high-quality products, sales of new energy vehicles are expected to be close to 7.8 million by 2025, with a penetration rate of more than 20%.

Overseas downstream: Tesla leads the world, the high growth rate in Europe continues, and North America bottoms out.

As a global leader in electric vehicles, Tesla continues to expand production and the products are in short supply. He sold 500000 vehicles in 2020 and is expected to sell 1 million vehicles in 2021. Driven by subsidy policies and new carbon regulations, Europe will have 1.367 million vehicles in 2020, a year-on-year increase of + 142%. With the accelerated launch of new models by traditional European automakers, sales of new energy vehicles in Europe are expected to exceed 1.9 million in 2021. From 2017 to 2020, the sales of new energy vehicles in the United States were 32 / 330000, respectively. With the policy support of the Biden government, sales of new energy vehicles in the US market in 2021 are expected to exceed 600000, more than 80 per cent year-on-year.

Supply chain: global matching ushered in volume dividend, the value of China's high-quality supply chain is prominent.

China's electrified supply chain is the most perfect in the world, especially lithium batteries and key raw materials (including positive and negative materials, diaphragms, electrolytes, etc.), thermal management, upstream equipment, metal resources and processing and other industry segments are gradually clear. and has the global competitiveness, enters the global supply chain. With the accelerated volume of electric vehicles in the world in 2021 and the outbreak of demand in the electric supply chain, Chinese electric supply chain enterprises, especially the leading enterprises in various links, are speeding up to go overseas and fully enjoy the global electric volume dividend.

He continues to recommend high-quality enterprises with globally competitive supply chains, focusing on the supply chains of Tesla, Volkswagen MEB, LG Chemistry and Ningde era.

Under the continuous volume pull of Tesla, Volkswagen MEB, domestic auto-building new forces and traditional automobile enterprises in the whole vehicle link, the growth certainty of LG chemistry and Ningde era of lithium battery link is high, and its contribution to the growth of its upstream supply chain is clear, and its supply chain is mostly competitive leading enterprises in various fields, which fully enjoy the supporting performance flexibility in the short term. In the medium and long term, the product barrier is high, the demonstration effect is strong, and there is more room for growth, which is worth paying attention to. At the current time, it is recommended to seize two types of opportunities:

1) for some very high-quality companies in the supply chain, the market thinks that the short-term valuation is high, but we believe that driven by the outbreak of downstream demand, such high-quality enterprises have high certainty of performance growth by virtue of their strong competitiveness, and are expected to quickly digest high valuations in the future.

2) the valuations of some companies in the supply chain are not high, benefiting from downstream demand-driven performance and valuation are expected to rise.

"risk factors:

Sales of new energy vehicles fall short of expectations, terminal price competition intensifies, costs fall less than expected, new energy vehicle policies fluctuate, technological progress falls short of expectations, raw material prices fluctuate, quality and safety of new energy vehicles products.

"Investment advice:

The global prosperity of new energy vehicles continues to resonate upward, the integration of domestic and foreign industrial chain enterprises is accelerated, and Tesla leads many car companies around the world to promote the wave of electric intelligence. In the short term, electric sales in China, Europe and the United States continue to exceed market expectations. In the medium and long term, the trend of electric intelligence of automobile is irreversible, and the permeability is increasing. China's supply chain has global competitiveness, with capacity, technology, cost, customer and other advantages, will fully enjoy the industry growth dividend, the future growth space is huge. Recommend high-quality supply chain enterprises with global competitiveness:

1) Ningde era, BYD, Yiwei LiNeng, Xin Wanda, Jingda Co., Yihuatong, etc.; German Nano, Pu Tailai, New Zebang, Xiamen Tungsten Industry, etc., of battery / motor links, such as Ningde era, BYD, Yiwei Lithium, Xinwang Lithium Co., Ltd.

2) upstream equipment and resources: Ganfeng lithium industry, Hangke science and technology, pilot intelligence, etc.;

3) Thermal management supply chain: Sanhua Intelligent Control (thermal management), Silverwheel shares (thermal management), Top Group;

4) lightweight: Wen can shares, Xusheng shares, Aikodi, Minshi Group, Berkeley, Huayu Automobile, China Ding shares. Suggested attention: Shengxin Lithium Energy, Tianci Materials, Yutong bus, Wolong Electric Drive, Guoxuan Hi-Tech, Dangsheng Technology, Zhongwei shares, Green Mei, Shanshan shares, Zhongke Electric, Xingyuan material, Tiannai Technology, Aotejia, Kodali and so on.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or for more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn
For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn
Related News
Ivanhoe Expands DRC Western Forelands Copper Resource by 30%, Makoko Scoping Study Planned for 2027
8 hours ago
Ivanhoe Expands DRC Western Forelands Copper Resource by 30%, Makoko Scoping Study Planned for 2027
Read More
Ivanhoe Expands DRC Western Forelands Copper Resource by 30%, Makoko Scoping Study Planned for 2027
Ivanhoe Expands DRC Western Forelands Copper Resource by 30%, Makoko Scoping Study Planned for 2027
Ivanhoe Mines has increased the contained copper resource at its Western Forelands exploration project in the Democratic Republic of Congo by approximately 30%, further expanding the scale of the Makoko District copper discovery.​ The updated 2026 Mineral Resource includes 42 million tonnes of Indicated Resources grading 2.66% copper and 612 million tonnes of Inferred Resources grading 1.80% copper, on a 100% basis. Ivanhoe said approximately 64,000 metres of diamond drilling across 106 holes completed since its May 2025 resource update increased contained copper to around 12 million tonnes.​ The Western Forelands licence package covers approximately 2,426 sq km, more than six times the area of the adjacent Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex. Ivanhoe describes Western Forelands as the world’s largest and highest-grade copper discovery of the past decade.​ The company is carrying out a record 94,500-metre exploration drilling programme in 2026, while the latest resource estimate only incorporates drilling completed up to March 31. Ivanhoe plans to expand drilling further in Q4 2026, including additional infill work targeting shallow mineralisation with potential for open-pit extraction.​A Makoko scoping study is scheduled to begin in Q1 2027, with conceptual mine planning already considering multiple shallow open pits.​ The 30% increase in contained copper materially strengthens Makoko’s scale and moves the project closer to formal development assessment. The planned scoping study marks an important transition from exploration toward evaluating potential mine economics. Ivanhoe also expects its experience developing the adjacent Kamoa-Kakula complex to support a faster development pathway. However, Makoko remains at an early study stage, with capital requirements, production rates and a definitive development schedule yet to be established.
8 hours ago
GACC: China's January-August copper ore and concentrate imports totaled 19.49 million mt, down 2.8% YoY
10 hours ago
GACC: China's January-August copper ore and concentrate imports totaled 19.49 million mt, down 2.8% YoY
Read More
GACC: China's January-August copper ore and concentrate imports totaled 19.49 million mt, down 2.8% YoY
GACC: China's January-August copper ore and concentrate imports totaled 19.49 million mt, down 2.8% YoY
10 hours ago
Global Copper Concentrate Market Tightens as Smelting Capacity Expands — Cochilco
10 hours ago
Global Copper Concentrate Market Tightens as Smelting Capacity Expands — Cochilco
Read More
Global Copper Concentrate Market Tightens as Smelting Capacity Expands — Cochilco
Global Copper Concentrate Market Tightens as Smelting Capacity Expands — Cochilco
The global copper concentrate market is facing increasingly structural tightness as smelting capacity expands faster than the availability of concentrates for third-party processors, according to the Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco).​ In its newly released Concentrate Market and Smelter Industry Report 2026, Cochilco said declining ore grades, project delays and operational disruptions have constrained mine-side concentrate supply, while new smelting capacity has continued to expand rapidly, particularly in China and Indonesia.​ The imbalance has pushed spot treatment and refining charges, or TC/RCs, to near-zero and in some cases negative levels during 2025 and 2026. Cochilco said the pressure is not purely cyclical, noting that part of future mine production is expected to be processed at integrated facilities in producing countries rather than sold into the merchant concentrate market.​ As a result, concentrate availability for independent smelters could remain tight even if global mine supply improves toward 2028.​ The report estimates that identified projects could add around 8.2 million mt/year of fine-copper-equivalent smelting capacity globally by 2041, with most of the growth concentrated in Asia. China and India are expected to account for nearly half of the planned additions, further intensifying competition for feedstock.​ Cochilco also highlighted Chile’s position in the market. The country accounted for around 23% of global copper concentrate production in 2025 and has approximately 5.44 million mt/year of concentrate treatment capacity, the largest in Latin America. However, Chilean smelters currently operate at only around 60% of installed capacity.​ The report reinforces the view that pressure on the global concentrate market could persist even if mine supply recovers. Continued smelting expansion without equivalent growth in freely traded concentrate supply is likely to keep TC/RCs under pressure and strengthen miners’ negotiating position. For smelters, profitability may increasingly depend on higher utilisation rates, better operational efficiency and additional revenues from sulfuric acid, energy and associated-metal recovery rather than TC/RC income alone.
10 hours ago
Citic Securities: the global penetration rate of new energy vehicles is expected to be close to 20% in 2025. - Shanghai Metals Market (SMM)