Based on the good expectations of the new energy vehicle market space, some large-scale and strong enterprises in China have begun to get involved in the lithium-ion battery electrolyte field, and have seized the opportunity to expand production capacity, and the market price competition pressure is increasing.
The lithium battery electrolyte acts as a conductive ion between the positive and negative electrodes of the lithium battery. It is a guarantee for the high voltage and high specific energy of the lithium ion battery. Studies have shown that the choice of electrolyte for the energy density of lithium ion batteries, Cyclic performance, rate performance, storage performance, etc. are crucial, and have a great impact on the safety performance of the battery. With the development of the new energy automobile industry and energy storage industry and the expansion of the market scale, the demand for power batteries will remain in the future. It will grow steadily. But the other side of the matter is that, based on the good expectations of the new energy vehicle market space, some large-scale and strong enterprises in China have begun to get involved in the lithium-ion battery electrolyte field, and have seized the opportunity to expand production capacity. The market price competition pressure is increasing.
It is worth noting that the competition in the power battery industry is becoming increasingly fierce, the industry reshuffle is intensifying, and the competition for power battery prices is gradually being transmitted to the upstream, making the competition in the electrolyte market more and more heated. Recently, the relevant person in charge of Xinzhou State said in an interview that Under the reasonable profit margin, the price of lithium battery electrolyte will show a certain downward trend in the future, and the gross profit will also drop.
According to Battery China.com, Xinzhou State's lithium-ion battery chemical business in the first half of 2018 achieved operating income of 482 million yuan, an increase of 19.75% year-on-year; gross profit margin was 27.10%, a year-on-year decrease of 7.14%.
Coincidentally, another domestic lithium battery electrolyte giant - Tianci Materials announced the first half of the 2018 financial report, also confirmed the trend of electrolyte price decline. Tianci material announcement shows that the company achieved net income attributable to shareholders of listed companies in the first half of this year The profit was 445 million yuan, an increase of 151.67% over the same period of last year, but mainly due to the change in the accounting method of the company's shareholding subsidiary Jiangsu Ronghui General Lithium Industry Co., Ltd. during the reporting period, and the increase in investment income due to the disposal of the equity of Ronghui. Excluding the above reasons, the net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies was 429 million yuan, and the net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies decreased by 91.10% compared with the same period of the previous year. The decrease was mainly due to the intensified market competition during the reporting period. In addition, the company expects gross profit margin to continue to decline by about 5% in the second half of the year.
The gross profit margin has declined. In addition to the impact of downstream overcapacity, the strengthening of environmental protection supervision is also an important factor. The relevant person in charge of Xinzhou State said that the strengthening of domestic environmental protection supervision has led to tighter supply of raw materials, which in turn has led to a rise in raw material prices. The cost increase is higher than the income growth rate, which eventually leads to a decline in its gross profit.
In addition, the change in the gross profit margin of the electrolyte, in addition to changes in the competitive landscape of the industry, is also greatly affected by upstream materials such as lithium hexafluorophosphate. For companies that purchase purely solute and additive synthetic electrolytes, the profitability fluctuations are more obvious.
Reducing the decline in gross profit margin and maintaining high profitability, the key still depends on the innovation strength of enterprise technology R&D, especially for the competitively hot electrolyte market. The Power Battery Blue Book (2018) shows that the electrolyte is made up of solvent, solute. Raw materials such as additives are prepared according to a certain ratio. In general, the proportion of solvent is 80-90%, the proportion of lithium salt is about 8%, and the proportion of additives is 5-10%. The specific ratio is based on the needs of downstream customers. However, in essence, in addition to the necessary process control, the core barrier of the electrolyte lies in the formulation and customization. The electrolyte product needs to be adapted to the user's positive and negative materials, and optimized to improve some performance requirements. For different users, the electrolyte often involves different proportions and additives for customization. In addition, the difference in electrolyte performance is reflected in the additives. Technological innovations in formulas and additives have become the killer of competition among enterprises.
There are many kinds of additives. Different lithium ion battery manufacturers have different requirements on the use and performance of the battery. The focus of the selected additives is also different. The barriers to preparation of additives are relatively high, and the product requires 99.999% purity. It requires 99.53% purity, and environmental protection requirements are becoming more and more strict. At present, the market concentration is relatively high. With the increasing demand for new energy vehicles for cruising range, in order to improve battery energy density, the power battery is highly nickelized. It has become a common consensus in the industry. The high nickelization trend of power batteries has also put forward new requirements for electrolyte additives. According to the battery China website, at present, domestic enterprises have invested a lot of money in electrolytes and additives and achieved corresponding results. New additives for high nickel direction have been developed. As the performance requirements of batteries increase, the role of additives is becoming more and more important. In the long run, the proportion of additives should be increased.
In the past, the production of lithium battery electrolyte has been controlled by Japan and South Korea, and the price has remained high for a long time. With the breakthrough of domestic lithium hexafluorophosphate technology, the electrolyte has gradually become localized. The data shows that in 2015, China's electrolyte production has accounted for global production. 60%. At the same time, the localization of the electrolyte plays a positive role in reducing the cost of the battery. It is understood that the amount and price of the electrolyte are related to the electrolyte formulation and the type of the battery, considering that the electrolyte currently accounts for the cost of the battery. 5%-10%. Battery China Network believes that the future decline in electrolyte prices will reduce the cost pressure of battery companies to some extent.
