LFP Battery with Energy Density above 185 wh/kg Will Have Mass Production

Today, SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate spot prices continued to drift lower compared with the previous working day. The lithium carbonate 2701 contract opened lower at 132,400 yuan/mt today. After the open, bears kept up the pressure, and prices drifted lower, hitting a low of 127,100 yuan/mt. Subsequently, dip-buying emerged at lows, and prices rebounded to around 130,000 yuan/mt. Around midday, prices moved sideways below the average price line. In the afternoon, bulls briefly pushed prices up sharply, but the move was not sustained, and prices pulled back again. Near the close, prices consolidated at lows around 129,100 yuan/mt, eventually closing down 3.32% at 129,100 yuan/mt. Open interest increased by 7,123 lots. In the spot market, as prices drifted lower to new lows, downstream dip-buying and stockpiling were active. Upstream lithium chemical plants showed strong willingness to hold spot order prices firm, with limited selling. Overall, market inquiries and actual transactions remained active.

According to Canada Nickel on September 14, the company has selected Komatsu and its Canadian dealer SMS Equipment to provide loading, hauling and supporting mining equipment for the Crawford nickel-cobalt sulphide project. Canada Nickel expects to purchase more than 300 pieces of equipment over the project’s roughly 40-year mine life, with a total current value of approximately C$1.5 billion. The parties aim to finalize the agreement by the first quarter of 2027. Crawford is 100%-owned by Canada Nickel and is the company’s flagship nickel-cobalt sulphide project. The selection of key equipment suppliers marks another step toward construction readiness. Komatsu’s proposed solutions also include autonomous haulage, fleet management and electrification technologies. As equipment procurement and engineering preparations advance, the Crawford project is moving closer to commercial development and could strengthen future North American supply of domestic nickel and cobalt resources.

On Sept 15, bid results were announced for energy storage system procurement of the Renqiu Zhihong 100MW/400MWh LFP plus sodium-ion independent storage pilot project in Hebei. Lot 1 covers LFP systems (30MW/120MWh large-capacity plus 60MW/240MWh long-life), won by Envision Energy at RMB 194.616 million, or RMB 0.518/Wh. Lot 2 covers a 10MW/40MWh sodium-ion system, won by CATL at RMB 41.416 million, or RMB 1.035/Wh. The project pilots a mixed LFP-sodium technology route for grid-side storage.