CMOC Updates Resource Reserves at Bikita Lithium Mine

On July 29, Rio Tinto announced its 2026 H1 results. According to the data, in H1, Rio Tinto's underlying earnings reached $6.85 billion, up 43% YoY; net profit was $6.66 billion, up 47% YoY. In H1, net cash generated from operating activities was $9.2 billion, underlying EBITDA was $14.8 billion, underlying ROIC was 17%, underlying earnings per share were 421.4¢, dividends per ordinary share were 211¢, and the payout ratio was 50%.

[SMM Analysis: Warm Isostatic Pressing Material Misalignment: The "Achilles' Heel" of Sulfide Solid-State Battery Mass Production] Warm isostatic pressing is the core process for solid–solid interface densification in sulfide all-solid-state batteries. However, the substantial differences in compressive modulus and plastic deformation among cathode and anode active materials, solid-state electrolyte, and copper and aluminum current collectors cause non-uniform creep and interlayer slip within the multi-layer structure under 600 MPa isotropic high pressure. This is tolerable in small laboratory cells, but when scaling up to large-capacity automotive-grade cells, the yield crashes. The solution priorities are clear: material modification (addressing the root cause) > process optimization (providing relief) > equipment upgrade (limited symptom treatment with a clear ceiling). The hardware gap for China's warm isostatic pressing equipment continues to narrow, but shortcomings remain in process databases and turnkey solutions. The industry is now in a window period for pilot-scale equipment procurement, and China's iteration pace is faster than that outside China. The long-term success of equipment suppliers depends on turnkey line solutions and partnerships with leading clients, while standalone machine performance is merely the entry barrier. Constrained by the material misalignment bottleneck, achieving full-scale solid-state battery integration at the million-unit level before 2030 is extremely difficult, with only small-batch demonstrations in high-end car models likely to appear from 2027 to 2029.