Prices of Lithium Carbonate and Lithium Hydroxide Stabilised, While the Average Price of Spodumene Concentrate Exceeded $4,000/mt

According to news released by Hunan Zhongke Shinzoom Co., Ltd., on September 10, the main structure of the integrated office building (carbonisation workshop office building) for Phase I of Zhongke Shinzoom's Oman lithium-ion battery anode material integrated base project was topped out. This building, standing in the Sohar Free Zone, will lay a solid foundation for subsequent completion, delivery, and operational commissioning.

South Korea’s Ministry of Trade and Industry announced on September 17 that 9 government-level industrial and supply-chain cooperation documents had been signed with five Central Asian countries during meetings held from September 14 to 16. It was the first time in 34 years of diplomatic relations that South Korea and all five countries jointly discussed industrial cooperation and critical-mineral supply chains, including lithium and rare earths. The documents comprise one multilateral industrial and supply-chain cooperation MOU and eight bilateral agreements. South Korea and Uzbekistan agreed to establish a full-cycle cooperation platform covering critical-mineral exploration and processing. The private sector signed 116 MOUs: 78 involving Kazakhstan, 5 Uzbekistan, 14 Turkmenistan and 19 at the Korea–Central Asia Business Summit.

On September 15, 2026, the Science and Technology Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released the Guidelines for the Construction of the Power Battery Recycling and Utilization Industry Standard System (2026 Edition) (draft for comments), soliciting public feedback from September 16 to October 15, 2026.