SMM January 15 News:
Electrolyte prices remained stable this week, with the average prices for ternary (for NEV), LFP (for NEV), and LMO electrolytes at 37,250 yuan/mt, 35,750 yuan/mt, and 28,750 yuan/mt, respectively. Cost side, prices of key electrolyte raw materials such as LiPF6 and VC dropped back slightly recently as the tight supply-demand pattern gradually eased, directly driving down electrolyte production costs. However, due to the time lag in cost transmission and the fact that some previously signed orders did not fully cover costs, the recent raw material price decline has not yet been passed through to end-use product prices, but rather helped restore electrolyte producers' profit margins. Therefore, electrolyte market prices showed no significant change recently. Demand side, overall market demand was expected to pull back due to seasonal factors, while the recently introduced battery export tax rebate phase-out policy was expected to provide some support to demand. However, given high raw material costs, the supportive effect has not been clearly visible yet and has not significantly boosted electrolyte demand. Supply side, the electrolyte industry continued to operate at a pace aligned with demand. For producers lacking self-supply of raw materials, as some orders could not achieve full cost pass-through and demand contracted, they were expected to proactively reduce order volumes. In contrast, some producers with self-supply capabilities, though also facing weakening downstream demand, leveraged their cost advantages to take on orders that small and medium-sized producers could not afford, resulting in a relatively limited decline in production. Considering changes in the supply-demand pattern and cost side trends, electrolyte prices were expected to remain stable in the short term.
SMM New Energy Research Team
Wang Cong 021-51666838
Ma Rui 021-51595780
Feng Disheng 021-51666714
Lyu Yanlin 021-20707875
Zhou Zhicheng 021-51666711
Xu Mengqi 021-20707868
Hu Xuejie 021-20707858
Chen Bolin 021-51666836
Wang Yizhou 021-51595909
