On the evening of January 4, 2023, Huayou Cobalt announced that it has signed a Sales Agreement of Ternary Precursors with POSCO and POSCO-Huayou ESM respectively. According to the Sales Agreement, Huayou Cobalt and its subsidiaries will supply about 160,000 tons of ternary precursors of Li-ion batteries to POSCO from January 2023 to December 2025, and about 15,000 tons of ternary precursors of Li-ion batteries to POSCO-Huayou ESM.

Cooperating Again with POSCO

Huayou Cobalt first started cooperating with POSCO in 2018.

In January 2018, Huayou Cobalt and POSCO, the actual controller of POSCO Chemical Co., Ltd., jointly established two subsidiaries to jointly invest in Li-ion battery new energy materials industry, which is an important measure for Huayou Cobalt to transform to the Li-ion battery materials industry.

▲On January 10, 2018, Huayou successfully signed a contract with POSCO (Pohang Iron and Steel Co.,Ltd. from Korea) for the project of Li-ion battery new energy materials.

In March 2020, a Huayou Cobalt subsidiary signed the Long term Purchase and Sales Contract of N65 Precursors with POSCO. With a total contract quantity of about 76,250 tons, the contract is valid from March 2020 to December 2022. According to the then market price, the total contract amount is about RMB 7.2 billion to RMB 7.6 billion, accounting for about 40% of the audited operating revenue of Huayou Cobalt reported in 2019.

Based on many years of good cooperation with POSCO, Huayou Cobalt once again signed a supply agreement with POSCO, entering into a new round of development cycle. Huayou Cobalt said that the long-term ternary precursor supply agreement with POSCO is conducive to further deepening the cooperation between the two sides, improving the company's market share of ternary precursors, and strengthening the company's competitiveness in the field of new energy Li-ion battery materials.

Qian Xiangjing, a distinguished professor of the School of Management of Zhejiang University, told the journalist, "In June 2022, Huayou Cobalt disclosed information regarding three major investment projects with a total investment amount of more than RMB 20 billion, all of which are the company's layout in the field of Li-ion battery materials. At present, Huayou Cobalt has formed an industrial pattern of integrated and coordinated development of resources, new materials and new energy, which are built into a vertically integrated industrial chain. "

The expert continued to say, "POSCO has advantages in technologies and marketing channels in terms of ternary precursors, ternary cathode materials, automotive Li-ion power batteries, etc. Therefore, maintaining good cooperation with POSCO can help Huayou Cobalt quickly integrate into the global NEV supply chain system and expand its presence in the global market for new energy Li-ion battery materials."

The Integrated Business Strategy Shows Positive Results

From the development of cobalt, nickel, and Li-ion resources to the building of an integrated industrial chain of Li-ion battery materials, Huayou Cobalt has grown into one of the global leaders in the field of new energy Li-ion battery materials in recent years. With outstanding product advantages and strong R&D strength, Huayou Cobalt has become an integral part of the core industrial chain of the global leading enterprises of power Li-ion batteries, such as CATL, BYD, LG, SKI, Yiwei Li-ion Energy, and its products have been applied to high-end EV producers, such as Tesla, Volkswagen MEB Platform, Renault-Nissan Alliance, Volvo, Land Rover and Jaguar.

The relevant person of Huayou Cobalt believes that the Company has achieved remarkable results in implementing the business strategy of industrial integration and high-end products. "In the first three quarters of 2022, our output and sales of nickel products and new energy Li-ion battery materials have increased in different rates, and the prices of major battery metals have also increased in different rates year on year. Therefore, in terms of sales of new energy Li-ion battery materials, our profitability in 2022 has improved year on year."

With the rapidly increasing demand for new energy Li-ion battery materials in 2022, Huayou Cobalt also achieved outstanding results. In the first three quarters of 2022, our main operating revenue was RMB 48.712 billion, a year-on-year increase of 113.69%. Our net profit attributable to the parent company was RMB 3.008 billion, a year-on-year increase of 26.98%. After deducting non-recurring profit and loss, our net profit was RMB 2.919 billion, a year-on-year increase of 25.91%.

▲On October 12, 2022, the first batch of 10,000 tons of imported nickel raw materials arrived at Jiaxing Port

As for the capacity under construction and the future layout, the relevant person of Huayou Cobalt said, "At present, Huayou Cobalt has made an in-depth layout in the field of nickel, cobalt and other important metal raw materials for ternary Li-ion batteries, and Huayue 60,000-ton Nickel Hydrometallurgy Project has reached designed capacity in the last year. The high grade nickel matte production line of the Huake 45,000-ton Nickel Project has been put into pilot production in the fourth quarter of 2022, and the first batch of high grade nickel matte was shipped to China at the end of November 2022. The Huafei 120,000-ton Nickel Project is expected to meet the conditions of material input in the first half of 2023. The Zimbabwe Li-ion Ore Project is expected to produce Li-ion concentrate in the first half of 2023. Quzhou Fixed Increase Plan of 50,000-ton Precursor Project, Quzhou Convertible Bonds of 50,000-ton Precursor Project, Guangxi 100,000-ton Precursor Project, and 50,000-ton Cathode Material Integration Project are progressing smoothly, and are expected to contribute to the growth of new energy materials. "

The relevant person of Huayou Cobalt said, "In addition, Huayou Cobalt also successfully acquired Arcadia Li-ion Ore in Zimbabwe, invested in AVZ, an Australian listed company, arranged Manono Li-ion Ore in Congo, and actively laid out Li-ion battery recycling business. Huayou Cobalt's Quzhou Manufacturing Platform was successfully selected into the first batch of five enterprises in line with the Industry Standard Conditions for Comprehensive Utilization of Waste Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People's Republic of China."