From King of Separators to Sulfide “Materials Supplier”: Enjie’s Bold Bet on the Golden Decade Window for All-Solid-State Batteries

From Separator King to Sulfide “Materials Supplier”: Enjie’s High-Stakes Bet on the Golden Decade Window for All-Solid-State Batteries

When a disruptive technology signals an “overhaul” of your core business, the only thing you can do is acquire the companies building the tools for this change before the transformation arrives.
The lithium battery separator industry is experiencing a seismic shift.
Recently, Enjie, the global leader in battery separators, announced its plan to acquire Zhongke Hualian, a wet-process separator equipment manufacturer. Intriguingly, the target company ran at a loss last year. Meanwhile, Enjie itself is facing tough times, with a net loss of 556 million yuan in 2024 and continued losses in 2025.
A loss-making industry leader acquiring another loss-making upstream equipment supplier—does this sound like a mathematical game of “two negatives make a positive”, or a desperate act of “mutual support amid adversity”?
The story is far more complex and thrilling. Once an “invisible champion” that raked in 4 billion yuan annually from its lithium battery separator business and held a staggering 30% of the global market share, Enjie is now confronting two major challenges simultaneously: a brutal industry price war raging in the present, and a disruptive threat from the future technological roadmap—solid-state batteries.
This self-rescue effort by a leading enterprise with a market capitalization of over 100 billion yuan is not only a matter of life and death for the company itself, but also bears on China’s initiative in the entire lithium battery industrial chain. Every step it takes is a high-stakes gamble.

From Peak to Abyss: The “Avalanche” in Separator Prices

To understand Enjie’s predicament, we must first recognize how glorious it once was.
A lithium battery is like a sandwich: the cathode and anode are the two slices of bread, the electrolyte in between is the cream, and the separator is the insulating paper that prevents direct contact between the cathode and anode, which would otherwise cause a short circuit. This tiny membrane boasts extremely high technical barriers—its pore size, thickness, and strength directly determine the battery’s safety and lifespan.
Enjie reigned supreme globally in this “paper” segment. Its client list reads like a “who’s who” of the lithium battery industry: CATL, BYD, EVE Energy, CALB, and more.
Virtually all top-tier battery manufacturers count Enjie as their supplier. At the industry’s peak in 2022, the company recorded a revenue of 12.59 billion yuan, a net profit exceeding 4 billion yuan, and a gross profit margin that once neared 50%—making it a veritable cash cow.
However, super-profits attracted hordes of competitors. Driven by the boom in the new energy sector in recent years, capital from all walks of life flooded into the separator market, leading to a drastic expansion of production capacity. When supply growth far outpaced downstream demand, a ruthless price war ensued.
Data lays bare this “avalanche”: the price of mainstream 9μm wet-process base membranes plummeted from several yuan per square meter at the peak to around 0.8 yuan per square meter in the second half of 2025, edging perilously close to the industry’s cost line.
The consequences of this price collapse are directly reflected in Enjie’s financial statements:
  • Stagnant Revenue: Growth turned negative in 2023, as the growth engine sputtered to a halt.
  • Collapsing Profits: A net loss of 556 million yuan in 2024, followed by a further loss of 86 million yuan in the first three quarters of 2025.
  • Gross Margin Halved—Then Halved Again: Plunging from the lofty heights of nearly 50% to a mere 11.07% in 2024.
Once the “profit king”, Enjie has fallen into a quagmire of stagnant revenue growth, shrinking profits, and even losses. The industry has transformed from a technology-driven blue ocean into a cutthroat red ocean dominated by cost competition.

Integrating the Industrial Chain: A Gamble on “Cost Reduction for Survival”

Faced with industry-wide losses, Enjie’s first move is vertical integration—acquiring upstream equipment supplier Zhongke Hualian.
The logic behind this move is clear: since it has no control over the prices of its downstream products (separators), it will seek profits upstream by seizing control of the lifeline of production equipment.
What is Zhongke Hualian’s background?
It is one of the few domestic companies capable of independently developing complete wet-process separator production lines, with over a decade of technical accumulation. Acquiring it means Enjie is expected to build an integrated chain covering equipment R&D and separator manufacturing.
The potential benefits of this seemingly “money-losing deal” include:
  1. Lower Equipment Investment Costs: Eliminating the need to purchase core equipment at high prices from external suppliers and instead producing equipment in-house can reduce fixed asset investment.
  2. Optimized Production Processes: Tighter integration between equipment and processes allows for targeted improvements to production lines, boosting efficiency and product yield.
  3. Building a Deeper Moat: Mastering core equipment technology in-house creates a complete technical barrier from equipment to products, making it harder for latecomers to catch up.
Enjie’s management has high hopes that this integration will effectively lower operational costs and drive profitability back on track. In essence, this is a battle for survival—one that seeks efficiency through better management and profits through industrial chain integration.

The Real “Gray Rhino”: The Disruptive Threat of Solid-State Batteries

Yet, compared to the cyclical industry price war, a larger and more fatal shadow looms over Enjie—the all-solid-state battery, hailed as the ultimate form of next-generation batteries.
The core of the problem is brutal and straightforward: in theory, all-solid-state batteries do not require separators.
Imagine spending years building a dominant position as the world’s largest candlewick supplier—only for the light bulb to be invented overnight. That is the long-term existential challenge Enjie faces. In 2024, 81.2% of the company’s revenue came from lithium battery separators. If this business is disrupted, it would spell disaster.
So, when will this “Sword of Damocles” fall? A rational analysis is needed:
The current industry consensus points to a gradual transition: liquid batteries → semi-solid-state batteries → all-solid-state batteries. Semi-solid-state batteries still require separators, providing Enjie with a valuable “escape window”. Moreover, the industry generally agrees that large-scale, low-cost commercialization of all-solid-state batteries will take another 5 to 10 years, or even longer.
This is Enjie’s most solid buffer. Currently, the core raw material cost of the best-performing sulfide solid electrolytes is over a hundred times that of liquid electrolytes. The overall cost of all-solid-state batteries is prohibitively high, meaning they are destined to be used only in ultra-high-end fields such as aerospace and deep-sea exploration for a long time, unable to shake the mainstream market of power batteries and energy storage batteries.
But this does not mean Enjie can rest easy. Once the wave of technological change is set in motion, it cannot be reversed. The company must find a second lifeline within this limited window.

Betting on Solid Electrolytes: From “Separator King” to “Materials Supplier”

Enjie is not sitting idly by. Its response strategy is clearly reflected in the direction of its R&D investment.
Even amid losses in 2024, the company’s R&D expenditure reached a substantial 663 million yuan, with continued increases. Where is this money going? The answer points directly to the future:
  1. Defending the Semi-Solid-State Fortress: Its subsidiary already has mass production and supply capabilities for semi-solid-state battery separators, actively expanding the market to ensure it does not fall behind during the transition period.
  2. Betting Big on the All-Solid-State Future: The company has strategically shifted its R&D focus to sulfide solid electrolytes—a technical route widely regarded as having the greatest long-term potential. In October 2025, the company announced that its pilot production line for high-purity lithium sulfide has been completed, and its 10-tonne production line for solid electrolytes has been put into operation.
  3. Opening a New Front in Energy Storage: Simultaneously, the company is seizing the opportunity of the booming energy storage market to drive product transformation, hoping to offset fluctuations in the power battery market with growing demand for energy storage batteries.
This means Enjie is attempting a risky identity transformation: evolving from a separator supplier in the liquid battery era to a core materials provider (solid electrolytes) in the solid-state battery era.
This is a thorny path. The technical routes and production processes of solid electrolytes are completely different from those of separators, equivalent to building an entirely new and equally competitive business on top of existing operations.
In the view of Yan Xi, Enjie’s predicament epitomizes the challenges faced by many leading Chinese manufacturers that rose to prominence by dominating a single technical high ground. They have reaped enormous dividends from technological breakthroughs, but are also more vulnerable to “precision strikes” from changes in technical routes.
Its self-rescue strategy is a combination of short-term defense and long-term offense:
  • Short Term (1–3 years): Reduce costs and boost efficiency through vertical integration (acquiring Zhongke Hualian) to weather the industry downturn; simultaneously, firmly grasp the transitional demand for semi-solid-state batteries and expand into the energy storage market to stabilize its core business.
  • Long Term (5–10 years): Go all-in on R&D, betting heavily on the sulfide solid electrolyte track to secure a future as a core supplier in a brand-new field.
This high-stakes gamble carries substantial risks:
  1. Cash Flow Pressure: With its core business losing money, continuous capital injection is required for mergers and acquisitions as well as cutting-edge R&D—placing extreme pressure on the company’s cash flow.
  2. Technical Route Risk: If the sulfide route fails to become the ultimate winner, or if the company’s R&D progress lags behind competitors, huge investments may be wasted.
  3. Transformation Execution Risk: Expanding from equipment to separators and then to electrolytes exponentially increases management complexity, placing extraordinary demands on the company’s strategic resolve and organizational capabilities.
The market’s current valuation of Enjie is a complex mix of discount and premium: discounted for the brutal price war and loss-making financial statements in the present; and premium for its global leading market share and its ambition to “regain the throne” in the solid-state battery era.
Its acquisition of a loss-making equipment supplier is not for simple financial consolidation, but to dig deeper trenches for survival. Its huge investment in the uncertain future of solid electrolytes is not chasing buzzwords, but buying a potential ticket to a new continent for long-term sustainability.
The crown of the “Separator King” is already cracked. With its actions, Enjie has made it clear that it is unwilling to be merely a king of the old era—it aspires to become one of the founders of the new era.
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Lithium Battery Prices Enter an Uptrend Channel: Rebalancing of Industrial Cycles and Value Logic

After years of an industry-wide downward cycle, the price of lithium iron phosphate has been on a continuous upward trend for six months starting from June 2025. Data from Shanghai Steelhome (25.720, +0.60, +2.39%) shows that as of mid-December 2025, the mainstream market price of power-oriented lithium iron phosphate had surged to RMB 41,200 per ton, representing a nearly 30% increase within half a year.
This price hike is by no means an isolated incident. A cost-driven wave of price increases, spanning from cathode materials to lithium salts, is reshaping the overall landscape of the lithium battery industry. Fueled by favorable cost-side dynamics, the new energy industry chain is undergoing a phase of self-calibration, with enterprises in niche segments such as large cylindrical batteries accelerating their deployment to capitalize on this trend.

Three Years of Industry Pressures Gradually Ease; Dual Drivers of Vehicle and Energy Storage Markets Propel Growth

Analysts point out that the current price rally of lithium iron phosphate is an inevitable outcome of the profound rebalancing of supply and demand following a three-year industry downturn. Fundamentally, it is underpinned by the dual demand drivers of the simultaneous expansion of new energy vehicles (NEVs) and energy storage sectors, which is gradually relieving the accumulated pressures across the industry.
From the end of 2022 to August 2025, the price of lithium iron phosphate materials plummeted by over 80%, placing significant profitability pressures on the entire industry.
The industry’s turning point emerged in June 2025. As upstream raw material prices climbed and downstream demand continued to recover, price increases became an inevitable choice for enterprises to sustain normal operations. Recently, several leading new energy companies including EVE Energy (68.970, +3.21, +4.88%) (rights protection), Chuangming New Energy, BAK Battery, and Tianneng Group have successively issued price adjustment notices, which are expected to drive a new round of performance growth for industry players.
Beneath the surface of rising raw material costs lies the robust support from the better-than-expected boom in downstream market demand—the core driver of this lithium iron phosphate price surge, stemming from the two key sectors of NEVs and energy storage.
Compared with lead-acid batteries, lithium iron phosphate batteries offer distinct advantages in performance, cost-effectiveness, and environmental friendliness. They have now become the mainstream technical route in NEVs, light-duty power systems, and energy storage systems, boasting strong irreplaceability. With the implementation of new national standards imposing higher requirements, the future market space for lithium iron phosphate batteries is set to expand further.
In the power battery sector, lithium iron phosphate has long established its dominant position. From January to November 2025, sales of lithium iron phosphate power batteries in China skyrocketed by 66.9% year-on-year, with their market share climbing to 72.8%. This growth momentum is highly aligned with the strong performance of the NEV market—during the same period, domestic NEV production and sales both exceeded 31% year-on-year, directly fueling the surge in demand for power batteries.
Demand growth in the energy storage market has been even more robust, emerging as another crucial engine driving lithium iron phosphate demand. GGII (Gaogong Industry Research Institute) predicts that the shipment volume of energy storage lithium batteries in China will surge by over 75% in 2025. Notably, nearly 100% of energy storage batteries adopt the lithium iron phosphate technical route, creating a more direct pull on upstream material demand. Data from relevant industry associations shows that lithium iron phosphate materials account for as high as 99.9% of the energy storage battery sector, solidifying its role as a key material cornerstone for the construction of new power systems.

From “Price Wars” to “Value Wars”: The Frenzy of “Full Production” for Large Cylindrical Batteries

The sustained recovery in prices is driving upstream and terminal battery industries to gradually move away from cutthroat low-price competition and enter a new development phase centered on value creation.
Industry-wide collaborative efforts to break the deadlock have taken the lead. In November 2025, representatives from seven major domestic lithium iron phosphate enterprises gathered in Beijing to discuss the industry’s future development direction. At the meeting, the China Chemical and Physical Power Industry Association explicitly advocated for reconstructing the industry’s pricing logic with cost indices as the core reference, fundamentally avoiding vicious competition and laying a solid foundation for the healthy development of the industry.
This guiding direction has already translated into positive signals at the enterprise operation level. Industry analysts generally believe that the dividends of this round of industry recovery will be concentrated more in leading enterprises with technological advantages, cost control capabilities, and high-quality customer resources.
Amid the explosive dual demand from the vehicle and energy storage sectors, small and medium-sized battery systems are also keeping pace. Light-duty power systems, portable energy storage, and residential energy storage are ushering in a new round of iterative growth. Take Chuangming New Energy, a veteran battery manufacturer and a leading player in the cylindrical battery segment, as an example. Recently, the company issued a public notice on price adjustments for large cylindrical lithium iron phosphate batteries, explicitly stating that it would raise prices for its entire range of battery products starting from December 1, 2025. This price adjustment is supported by the sustained high prosperity of its production capacity and orders—the Mianyang production base has maintained a long-term high capacity utilization rate, with its core product, the 32140 large cylindrical lithium iron phosphate battery, achieving full production and full sales. According to industry insiders close to the plant, current order backlogs are substantial, logistics operations are bustling, and production line automation efficiency ranks among the industry’s top tier. These details directly demonstrate the strong market demand for large cylindrical batteries.
Amid the competition among diverse battery technology routes, market attention on large cylindrical batteries has been continuously rising. Industry data shows that the global demand for large cylindrical batteries exceeded the 100 GWh mark in 2025. Coupled with the sustained growth momentum of small and medium-sized energy power systems, large cylindrical batteries are poised to enjoy considerable growth space in the coming years, emerging as a key driving force for the high-quality development of the battery industry.
Faced with rising material costs and fragmented market demand, enterprises with solid technological accumulation are building their competitiveness through product iteration and market positioning.
Taking Chuangming New Energy as an example, its 32140 lithium iron phosphate full-tab large cylindrical battery focuses on cost-performance ratio, while offering uniform heat dissipation and high safety. The battery can operate stably at a high temperature range of 60℃, making it highly suitable for light-duty power and residential energy storage markets in Southeast Asia and tropical regions. This technological advantage has been directly converted into market competitiveness. The company’s products have been mass-exported to markets such as the Middle East, Europe, and India, positioning it among the industry’s front-runners in overseas competition.

Future Outlook: Parallel Development of Technological Diversification and Market Segmentation

At present, the battery industry chain is in a period of dual transformation featuring structural adjustment and technological iteration. Beyond large cylindrical batteries, multiple technical routes including semi-solid-state, all-solid-state and sodium-ion batteries are also advancing in parallel and achieving accelerated breakthroughs.
For large cylindrical batteries, despite the core challenges they still face such as production efficiency and product consistency, they have been expanding their application scenarios by virtue of their unique advantages in energy density and structural stability. These batteries have deeply penetrated high-end electric vehicles, residential energy storage, portable energy storage and other fields, and have also emerged in emerging tracks such as eVTOL. With the continuous advancement of material system upgrading and production process optimization, large cylindrical batteries are expected to further unlock their market potential in light-duty vehicles, energy storage systems and other sectors, and play a more pivotal role.
The industry boom is also undergoing structural reshaping. Brokerage analysts point out that this round of lithium iron phosphate price increases is backed by solid fundamentals, and the industry’s long-term development trend remains positive. In addition, insiders from lithium battery enterprises indicate that downstream demand continues to stay robust, and the price adjustments triggered by cost pass-through are essentially a rational return of industry value.
Standing at the new starting point where the industry is moving towards high-quality development, the core competitiveness of enterprises will no longer be simply limited to production capacity scale and cost control capabilities, but will depend more on the comprehensive competition of technological innovation, capital strength and supply chain collaboration capabilities.
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Planning to Replace Your E-Vehicle Battery with a 5-Year Durable Option? Lithium Iron Phosphate vs. Sodium-Ion Batteries – A Comprehensive Breakdown of Costs and Cost-Effectiveness

Many e-vehicle owners are plagued by the problem of short battery life and frequent replacements. Numerous users report that the batteries they currently use often need to be replaced after just 1 to 2 years. If you want to choose a battery pack that can be used stably for more than 5 years, which type is actually more suitable? And what about the replacement cost? Industry insiders have provided professional recommendations.
In terms of battery performance, traditional lead-acid batteries and graphene batteries generally have a low number of charge-discharge cycles, making it difficult for them to meet the demand for more than 5 years of use. In contrast, lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries have a design life of over 2,000 cycles, with a theoretical service life of 8 to 10 years. Sodium-ion batteries (NIB) boast an even higher cycle count, exceeding 2,500 cycles, and also offer durability of more than 5 years. Therefore, if long-term use is a priority, these two battery types are the better choices.
The cost of battery replacement varies by type. Taking the 48V specification as an example, BYD’s special LFP battery for two-wheeled vehicles (with a 24Ah capacity) is priced at approximately 1,300 yuan, and a fast charger is included with the purchase. If the user’s original vehicle uses a lithium battery with a matching voltage, direct replacement is possible without additional modifications. For sodium-ion batteries, Chaowei’s 48V21Ah “Sodium Commander” battery is priced at around 900 yuan, also equipped with a fast-charging device. However, it should be noted that sodium-ion batteries have different interface standards from lead-acid or lithium batteries. Replacement requires simultaneous upgrades to components such as the controller and charger, and some vehicle models even need a dashboard replacement, resulting in a total cost similar to that of lithium batteries.
Regional differences are a key factor in battery type selection. In southern regions where winter temperatures are relatively high, LFP batteries have a distinct advantage in stability. They are particularly suitable for users whose original vehicles are already equipped with lithium batteries, as they offer higher safety and compatibility. In northern China, especially in areas with long, cold winters such as the Northeast and Northwest, sodium-ion batteries excel in low-temperature resistance. Measured data shows that Chaowei’s sodium-ion batteries can maintain over 90% of their capacity at -25℃, effectively solving the problem of reduced range in winter.
Although lead-acid batteries are inexpensive, their short service life and frequent replacement requirements mean that their long-term cost is not advantageous. If users wish to reduce the replacement frequency, LFP batteries and sodium-ion batteries are more economical options. Despite the higher initial investment, when amortized over a 5-year usage cycle, the annual average cost is actually lower. Additionally, they eliminate the hassle of frequent maintenance.
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Full-Scale Price Hike Across the Lithium Battery Industry: Power Battery Shortage Eases, While Energy Storage Battery Scarcity Persists

IT Home reported on December 31 that according to a report by Red Star News today, the shortage of power batteries for automakers has eased, but energy storage batteries remain scarce, leading to a full-scale price increase across the lithium battery industry.

The report stated that due to tight supply from first and second-tier battery manufacturers, some automakers dispatched personnel to battery companies to “scramble for batteries” between September and November 2025. By the end of 2025, the supply crunch of power batteries had alleviated, yet the shortage of energy storage batteries is expected to persist.

It was also mentioned that affected by insufficient battery supply, the delivery of multiple new energy vehicle models has been slow, and their production ramp-up speed has been difficult to increase. Examples include the Li Auto i6, the all-new NIO ES8, and the 2026 AITO M7. A relevant person in charge of Li Auto told the media, “The delivery of the i6 has indeed been delayed due to battery supply issues.”
According to a report by National Business Daily, since early December, several lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode material producers have launched a price hike wave, with an increase of 2,000-3,000 yuan per ton. This round of price increases is driven by strong demand for energy storage and rising raw material costs such as lithium carbonate. Industry insiders predict that the price uptrend will last until the fourth quarter of next year.

Zhou Bo, Secretary-General of the Lithium Iron Phosphate Material Branch of the China Chemical and Physical Power Industry Association, stated that the supply-demand dynamics in the LFP market have reversed. It is estimated that the top 20 enterprises in terms of capacity utilization rate are basically operating at full capacity, and many previously idle production capacities in the industry have also started to undertake OEM orders.
IT Home noted that on December 9, Dega Energy fired the “first shot” of lithium battery price increases. The company announced that to ensure the continuous and stable delivery of products and maintain quality, after internal research and decision-making, the selling price of battery products will be increased by 15% based on the current catalog prices starting from December 16, 2025.
Earlier this month, Farasis Energy also stated on the investor interaction platform that the prices of some raw materials have risen recently, coupled with the continuous expansion of market demand. The price increase of lithium batteries has become an industry trend.
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CATL Drops Out of Top 5 Customers! Good Electric Materials Files for IPO: Zhu Guolai Receives Over RMB 35 Million in Dividends in 3 Years

Family Members of the Actual Controller Hold Concentrated Shares, Export Pressure Mounts and Domestic Profit Margins Narrow: Multiple Challenges Behind Good Electric Materials’ IPO Journey

On December 22nd, Good Electric Materials System (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Good Electric Materials”) officially submitted its registration application, with Soochow Securities as the sole sponsor. It only took the company 6 months to advance from submitting the prospectus to the Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange to the registration stage, marking a rapid IPO process.
Notably, prior to this crucial juncture of sprinting for listing, Good Electric Materials’ shareholder camp has been filled with the relatives and friends of the actual controller Zhu Guolai—his wife, brother-in-law, former colleagues, and others have all become shareholders. Once the company successfully lists on the capital market, this “capital feast” will be shared by Zhu Guolai and his relatives and friends.
Compared with Good Electric Materials itself, its customer list is more well-known, including industry-leading enterprises such as CATL, Geely Auto, General Motors, and Xpeng Motors. In business cooperation, Good Electric Materials’ core role is to provide new energy vehicle power battery thermal runaway protection components for these customers, deeply binding itself to the core links of the new energy vehicle industry chain.
Although China has firmly established itself as the world’s largest new energy vehicle market, Good Electric Materials’ business layout has shown a distinct trend of “going global”, with its dependence on exports increasing year by year. However, changes in tariff policies in the international trade environment have impacted the company’s overseas business, directly leading to a decline in procurement scale from foreign-funded customers. Taking General Motors as an example, in the first 9 months of this year, its procurement volume from Good Electric Materials was halved compared with the same period last year.
At the same time, the competitive pattern of the domestic market has also put pressure on Good Electric Materials. The company has weak pricing power in the domestic market, with product prices remaining at a low level for a long time, and the gross profit margin of its core business has been declining for many consecutive years. With export channels blocked on one side and domestic profit margins continuously compressed on the other, Good Electric Materials’ path to breaking through the predicament is full of uncertainties.

I. Founding Team All Departed, Zhu Guolai Seized Control Against the Trend to Rewrite the Enterprise’s Trajectory

Tracing back its development history, Good Electric Materials did not start in the new energy vehicle field but in the power industry. In April 2008, Shi Huirong and Zhu Xingquan jointly invested 1 million yuan to establish Good Electric Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Good Electric”), the predecessor of Good Electric Materials, with Shi Huirong holding 60% of the shares and Zhu Xingquan 40%.
In the early days of its establishment, Good Electric focused on the power electrical insulation materials track, with key layouts in niche markets such as high-voltage generators and UHV power transmission and distribution. Relying on accurate market positioning, the company quickly opened up the situation: in 2009, it entered into strategic cooperation with France’s Firo and the United States’ Hexion; in 2010, it successfully entered the wind turbine blade structural adhesive market, and its business gradually got on track.
Unexpectedly, just as the enterprise was showing a good development momentum, the two founders chose to leave one after another. In March 2011, Shi Huirong transferred 9% of the company’s registered capital held by him to Zhu Guolai at a price of 2.7 million yuan; in the same period, Zhu Xingquan transferred 20% of the registered capital to Zhu Guolai and Zhu Haofeng respectively, with a total transfer price of 12 million yuan. Public information shows that Zhu Guolai and Zhu Haofeng were former colleagues.
After the completion of this equity transfer, Zhu Xingquan completely withdrew from the shareholder ranks, and Zhu Guolai and Zhu Haofeng held 29% and 20% of the company’s shares respectively. In November of the same year, Shi Huirong transferred the remaining equity again, transferring 41% of the registered capital to Zhu Guolai and 10% to Suzhou Guohao (a company controlled by Zhu Guolai), thus completely withdrawing from the company. After these two rounds of equity changes, Zhu Guolai’s direct shareholding ratio soared to 70%, officially becoming the company’s controlling shareholder.
It should be noted that in the above two rounds of equity transfers, the unit price of equity transferred by Shi Huirong and Zhu Xingquan was 1 yuan per registered capital. Notably, Shi Huirong is exactly Zhu Guolai’s father. Behind this series of equity changes, there are still many questions to be answered: Was the company profitable at the time of the equity transfer? Why did the founders choose to transfer their equity at par and leave? Is there any undisclosed affiliated relationship between Zhu Xingquan, Zhu Guolai, and Zhu Haofeng? Are there any irregularities such as shareholding on behalf of others or interest transfer during the equity transfer process?
After fully taking control of the company, Zhu Guolai initiated business transformation and expansion. In 2016, the company achieved a key breakthrough in the R&D of thermal runaway protection for new energy vehicles; in 2018, it further accelerated the layout of new energy vehicle business by acquiring Mica Electric, a mica production enterprise. Currently, the company’s products cover all levels of thermal runaway protection components such as battery cells, modules, and battery packs, successfully entering the core supply chain of new energy vehicles.
Taking advantage of the rapid development of China’s new energy vehicle industry, Good Electric Materials successfully became a supplier to leading battery manufacturers and automakers such as CATL, Tesla, Geely Auto, and General Motors, with simultaneous growth in revenue and profit scales. Financial data shows that from 2022 to the first half of 2025, the company achieved operating income of 475 million yuan, 651 million yuan, 908 million yuan, and 458 million yuan respectively, and net profit attributable to parent company shareholders of 64.0586 million yuan, 100 million yuan, 172 million yuan, and 81.1605 million yuan respectively, showing a good trend of double growth in revenue and profit.
Benefiting from the steady growth of performance, Good Electric Materials’ IPO process progressed smoothly. From submitting the prospectus in June 2025 to successfully passing the review on December 19th and submitting the registration on December 22nd, the whole process took only half a year. However, whether this impressive performance report card can ultimately win the recognition of the capital market remains to be tested by time.

II. Rising Dependence on Exports Hits a Snag, General Motors’ Procurement Halved Under Tariff Impact

Today, new energy vehicle-related business has become the core pillar of Good Electric Materials. As of the end of June 2025, new energy vehicle power battery thermal runaway protection components (hereinafter referred to as “power battery components”) contributed 67.3% of the company’s main business income, making them the absolute main source of revenue.
In recent years, China’s new energy vehicle market has continued to expand, not only giving birth to local leading automakers such as BYD, NIO, Li Auto, and Geely, but also gathering globally leading battery enterprises represented by CATL, with broad market space. However, against this background, Good Electric Materials has chosen to increase its overseas market layout, with the proportion of exports continuing to rise.
Financial data shows that from 2022 to 2024, the company’s export volume was 73.0453 million yuan, 186 million yuan, and 397 million yuan respectively, accounting for 15.50%, 28.82%, and 44.29% of the current main business income, achieving double growth in three years. Regarding the increase in the proportion of exports, Good Electric Materials explained in its reply to regulatory inquiries that the overseas new energy vehicle market is dominated by ternary lithium batteries, which have a more urgent demand for thermal runaway protection, and the company’s overseas customers are mainly automakers, giving it relatively stronger pricing power.
In sharp contrast to the overseas market, the domestic power battery market is highly concentrated, with leading battery manufacturers such as CATL and BYD occupying a dominant position and having strong discourse power. Good Electric Materials also admitted in its prospectus that in the fierce domestic market competition environment, the company’s pricing power is relatively weak.
This difference is directly reflected in product pricing and profitability. From 2022 to the first half of 2025, the export unit price of Good Electric Materials’ power battery components (excluding molds) rose from 50,400 yuan/ton to 139,200 yuan/ton, and the gross profit margin increased from 33.43% to 40.53% simultaneously; during the same period, the domestic sales unit price remained around 50,000 yuan/ton, while the gross profit margin dropped from 32.53% to 25.63%, indicating a continuous narrowing of domestic profit space.
More seriously, operational risks in the overseas market have gradually emerged. Good Electric Materials’ core overseas market is the United States, but frequent adjustments to U.S. tariff policies in recent years have significantly impacted the company’s export business. In the first 9 months of 2025, the company’s sales to General Motors were 75.6963 million yuan, a sharp year-on-year drop of 50.36%; in addition, sales to Company T (Tesla) and Volkswagen decreased by 0.55% and 33.90% year-on-year respectively.
Regarding the sharp decline in sales to General Motors, Good Electric Materials explained that it was mainly affected by two factors: first, changes in U.S. tariff policies in the first half of 2025 led General Motors to adjust the import locations of some components, resulting in delayed shipments in the second quarter, which directly dragged down the revenue in the first three quarters; second, General Motors had overly optimistic expectations for the growth of the new energy vehicle market earlier, and the supply chain inventory exceeded the actual market digestion capacity, leading to a short-term slowdown in the procurement rhythm of the supply chain.
To cope with the impact of tariff policies, Good Electric Materials has launched adjustments to its overseas layout. In June 2023, the company established a subsidiary in Mexico, focusing on the production and processing of new energy vehicle thermal runaway protection components; in November 2023, a U.S. subsidiary was established; in May 2025, a German subsidiary was launched, focusing on building an overseas marketing network to be responsible for the expansion of the North American and European markets and customer relationship management.
However, whether this series of adjustments to overseas layout can effectively hedge against the impact of tariffs and gain more overseas orders remains uncertain. From an industry perspective, the company’s overseas layout is more of a “passive response”—the domestic new energy vehicle market is fiercely competitive, the company’s profit space is severely squeezed, and it is difficult to further seize market share. The most typical example is that CATL was still Good Electric Materials’ largest customer in 2022, dropped to the third place in 2023, and completely withdrew from the list of the top five customers in 2024 and the first half of 2025.
Regarding the domestic market layout, there are still many questions to be clarified for Good Electric Materials: Has the sales volume to CATL continued to decline? Does the company plan to expand more domestic customers to optimize its customer structure? Why is there a huge gap between domestic and foreign product prices? How to balance the development rhythm of domestic and foreign markets to reduce operational risks?

III. Family Members Deeply Bound, Zhu Guolai Received Over 35 Million Yuan in Dividends in Three Years, Fund Raising for Liquidity Arouses Controversy

Today, Zhu Guolai still firmly controls the operational decision-making power of Good Electric Materials. Before the IPO application, Zhu Guolai directly held 46.76% of the company’s shares, and indirectly held 2.09% of the shares through two enterprises, Suzhou Guohao and Suzhou Guofeng, with a total shareholding ratio of 48.85%. Currently, Zhu Guolai serves as the company’s chairman and general manager, and is the company’s controlling shareholder and actual controller.
In addition to Zhu Guolai himself, his family members and former colleagues are also deeply involved in the company’s equity structure and operational management. Among them, Zhu Ying, Zhu Guolai’s wife, directly holds 1.12% of the shares; Zhu Min, Zhu Ying’s elder brother, holds 401,500 shares of the company; Zhu Haofeng, the second largest shareholder of the company, holds 10.65% of the shares, and his wife Qian Yuping holds 1.52% of the shares. Public information shows that Zhu Guolai and Zhu Haofeng once worked together at Wujiang Taihu Insulation Materials Factory for many years.
Notably, in March 2023, Good Electric Materials transferred 5% of the equity of its subsidiary Good瑞德 (Good瑞德) to Zhu Jianfeng at a price of 0 yuan. Data shows that Good瑞德 was established in June 2022, with its main business being copper-aluminum composite materials. It is a core platform for Good Electric Materials to expand into the new materials field, and its production line was gradually completed and put into operation in 2023. It is reported that Zhu Jianfeng and Zhu Guolai met through their hometown relationship, and the rationality of this 0-yuan equity transfer has also aroused market concern.
At the operational management level, family members also have a high degree of participation: Zhu Ying serves as the company’s investment director, Zhu Haofeng as a director and deputy general manager, Qian Yuping works in the Administration and Human Resources Department, and Zhu Xingzhu, Zhu Guolai’s mother, once worked in the company’s Production Department. In addition, the company provided loans to Shi Huirong (Zhu Guolai’s father), Zhu Xingzhu (Zhu Guolai’s mother), and the couple Zhu Haofeng and Qian Yuping in the early days, with loan amounts ranging from 350,000 yuan to 2.4 million yuan.
If Good Electric Materials is successfully listed, these family members will jointly share the dividends of capital appreciation. In fact, before the company sprinted for the IPO, Zhu Guolai had already obtained considerable benefits through cash dividends. From 2022 to 2024, Good Electric Materials implemented cash dividends of 28.185 million yuan, 15.525 million yuan, and 31.05 million yuan respectively, with a total dividend amount of 74.76 million yuan in three years. Based on a rough calculation of Zhu Guolai’s total shareholding ratio of 48.85%, he could receive more than 35 million yuan in dividends in three years.
Puzzlingly, after three consecutive years of cash dividends, Good Electric Materials plans to raise a large amount of funds to supplement working capital in this IPO. The prospectus shows that the company plans to raise 1.176 billion yuan this time, which even exceeds the company’s current total asset scale. As of the end of June 2025, Good Electric Materials’ total assets were 1.13 billion yuan, of which monetary funds were 271 million yuan, and there were no short-term loans, indicating a certain ability of capital turnover.
This series of financial arrangements has aroused many questions: If the company has capital needs for business expansion, why does it still continue to implement cash dividends? With the actual controller’s shareholding ratio close to 50%, does continuous dividend distribution have the suspicion of transferring interests to the actual controller? Is the scale of this fund-raising exceeding the company’s total assets reasonable? Is the operation of distributing dividends while raising funds to supplement working capital reasonable? Does it have the intention of “harvesting” the capital market?
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The Long-Term Contract Wave Spurs a RMB 400 Billion Capacity Expansion Spree—Energy Storage Is Treading the Well-Worn Path of PV Overcapacity!

The “Long-Term Contract Wave” Sweeps Across the Lithium Battery Industry

By the end of November, Longpan Technology (HK: 02465) signed a supplementary agreement with Chuna New Energy, stipulating the procurement of 1.3 million tonnes of cathode materials from 2025 to 2030. Based on the market price at that time, the total contract value is estimated to reach a staggering RMB 45 billion. This follows the RMB 47 billion contract signed between CATL (SZ: 300750) and Wanrun New Energy (SH: 688275) in early May, marking another blockbuster deal that sent shockwaves through the entire industry.
Huaxia Energy Network has observed that large-scale contracts in the lithium battery industry chain have exploded since the start of this year. Other lithium battery giants such as EVE Energy (SZ: 300014), Guoxuan High-Tech (SZ: 002074), and CALB (HK: 03931) have successively disclosed major procurement agreements covering key segments including lithium iron phosphate, positive and negative electrode materials, electrolyte, copper foil, and separators. These orders often amount to billions or even tens of billions of yuan, with contract terms mostly ranging from 3 to 5 years.
The downstream market has also seen a spate of multi-billion-yuan contracts. For instance, in November, HyperStrong Energy (SH: 688411) signed a 10-year strategic cooperation agreement with CATL, under which the procurement volume alone from 2026 to 2028 will be no less than 200 GWh. In December, Hithium Energy Storage signed a cooperation agreement with CRRC Zhuzhou Institute, committing to supply no less than 120 GWh of energy storage products during the “15th Five-Year Plan” period.
Since the beginning of the year, driven by the market boom, the lithium battery industry chain has re-entered a phase of “high capacity utilization, strong demand, and high expectations”, leading to tight supply across the chain. This has resulted in a more intense long-term contract signing spree than ever before. While this helps both supply and demand sides stabilize the supply chain and mitigate the impact of market fluctuations, it has also triggered a frantic capacity expansion wave.
Having just emerged from the previous adjustment cycle, the energy storage industry is once again in a frenzy. Industry insiders are worried that following the surge in long-term contracts, will the sector fall into the quagmire of severe overcapacity, just like the photovoltaic (PV) industry did a few years ago, from which it still struggles to recover?

Booming Energy Storage Market Spurs Leaders to Secure Long-Term Contracts

Behind this flurry of long-term contracts lies the explosive growth of the energy storage and new energy vehicle (NEV) markets this year.
Fueled by the concentrated commissioning of domestic new energy power stations, rising overseas demand for new energy consumption, and the growing energy storage supporting demand brought by U.S. AI infrastructure construction, the energy storage market is experiencing unprecedented prosperity. According to data from the National Energy Administration and third-party institutions, global lithium battery energy storage installations reached 170 GWh in the first three quarters of 2025, a year-on-year increase of 68%. Among this, domestic newly connected installations stood at 82 GWh, up 61% year-on-year, while overseas energy storage reached 94 GWh, a 74% year-on-year rise.
In the power battery sector, demand has surged significantly along with the growth in NEV sales. According to data from South Korea’s SNE Research, global power battery loading volume hit 811.7 GWh in the first three quarters of this year, a 34.7% increase compared to 602 GWh in the same period last year.
The explosive downstream demand has rippled up to the midstream and upstream segments, leading to full-capacity operations and bustling production activities across all links of the industry chain.
“Traditionally, December is the off-season for the industry, but this year, energy storage battery production scheduling is expected to achieve double-digit month-on-month growth in December,” an industry insider told Huaxia Energy Network. Public data shows that since the third quarter, CATL’s capacity utilization rate has exceeded 90%. EVE Energy also stated that its energy storage battery orders are robust and the company is operating at full capacity. Hithium Energy Storage has maintained full production at its Xiamen and Chongqing bases since March this year.
REPT BATTERO (HK: 00666) reported that its capacity utilization rate has remained above 90% since the second quarter, even hitting 100% in July. Longking Environmental Protection (SH: 600388) indicated that its order backlog for energy storage cells has been scheduled until June 2026.
On the upstream materials side, the lithium hexafluorophosphate (LiPF₆) production capacity of Tianci Materials (SZ: 002709), and the lithium iron phosphate (LFP) production capacities of Hunan Yuneng (SZ: 301358) and Anda Technology are all fully utilized, with some even exhibiting a “production line selecting orders” phenomenon. Shanshan Co., Ltd. (SH: 600884), a leading negative electrode material manufacturer, has had to outsource some orders to external contractors to meet supply demands.
Public information shows that the global energy storage cell capacity utilization rate reached 86% in 2025, far exceeding the 65% level in 2024.

High Capacity Utilization Drives Raw Material Price Hikes

Against the backdrop of high capacity utilization, enterprises’ strong demand for raw materials has triggered price increases across the board.
Huaxia Energy Network has noted that recently, prices have risen across multiple segments including lithium carbonate, electrolytic cobalt, lithium hydroxide, lithium hexafluorophosphate, lithium iron phosphate, wet-process separators, electrolyte, and negative electrode materials. Among these, on December 10, the spot average price of battery-grade lithium carbonate stood at RMB 96,230 per tonne, surging 31.80% over two months. The price of lithium hexafluorophosphate, a core electrolyte material, has skyrocketed by over 260% in nearly five months, with the average price exceeding RMB 180,000 per tonne.
In this context, leading enterprises, aiming to reduce production costs and ensure supply chain security, have successively “locked in orders” with upstream suppliers, making the frequent emergence of large-scale contracts a natural outcome.

Mounting Delivery Pressures Trigger New Round of Capacity Expansion

A sales manager at a battery procurement company complained to the media, “Currently, even if we pay full upfront payment, we can only pick up the battery cells in March next year.”
The person in charge of another energy storage system enterprise commented, “The ‘cell shortage’ is not a matter of insufficient total supply, but rather a structural mismatch. The supply shortage is concentrated in large-capacity energy storage cells, such as the mainstream 314Ah cells.”
Upstream material suppliers are also grappling with delivery challenges. The head of a leading lithium battery copper foil manufacturer stated that the company’s existing production capacity is “inadequate, resulting in immense delivery pressures.”
“Current order volumes have actually exceeded the peak production capacity of enterprises,” an analyst covering the electric equipment and new energy sector at a securities firm noted. To fulfill long-term order requirements, the energy storage industry is launching a new round of capacity expansion.
Huaxia Energy Network has observed that this wave of capacity expansion is mainly concentrated among leading enterprises in each segment. For example, CATL announced multiple new capacity projects in Fujian, Shandong, Henan, and other regions this year, with newly planned production capacity exceeding 70 GWh, and an additional 16 GWh of under-construction battery system capacity added in the first half of the year.
Guoxuan High-Tech has planned a total of 40 GWh of lithium battery and power battery production capacity in Nanjing and Wuhu, while also mapping out 20 GWh of power battery capacity each in Slovakia and Morocco. In addition, several other lithium battery leaders including CALB, EVE Energy, and Sunwoda Electronics (SZ: 300207) have clearly disclosed their capacity expansion plans. Among them, Chuna New Energy and CALB each have newly planned production capacity as high as 150 GWh. On June 18, CALB’s high-performance lithium battery project broke ground in Changzhou.
According to incomplete statistics from Huaxia Energy Network, the total newly planned production capacity of battery enterprises in this round exceeds 510 GWh, involving a total investment of RMB 176.2 billion.
Beyond battery manufacturers, leading enterprises in the midstream and upstream materials sectors have also launched capacity expansion initiatives, such as Pulead Technology Industry (SH: 603659), a dual leader in negative electrode materials and coated separators; Shangtai Technology (SZ: 001301), a leading negative electrode material producer; and Fullshare Precision Industry (SZ: 300432), a technology-driven leader in high-compaction lithium iron phosphate.
According to statistics from GGII (Gao Gong Industry Research Institute), from January to August this year, the number of newly signed and commenced capacity expansion projects in China’s lithium battery industry chain reached 183, with a total investment of approximately RMB 400 billion.
These figures only cover data up to August, and capacity expansion has intensified further in the fourth quarter. In the first half of this year, the energy storage industry was on the verge of a wave of excess capacity consolidation; now, the tide has turned to a scramble for capacity expansion. The unpredictable industry trends have aroused deep concerns among many rational observers.

Lithium Battery Enterprises Face Mixed Sentiments Amid Painful PV Industry Lessons

Currently, leading enterprises in the lithium battery industry generally hold an optimistic outlook for the future.
For example, He Jiayan, Vice President of Ganfeng Lithium Industry (SZ: 002460), recently stated that the lithium industry has entered an upward cycle. Bu Xiangnan, Executive Vice President of Chuna New Energy, also commented, “The industry will see another growth of 35% to 40% next year, translating to shipments of 800 GWh to 900 GWh.”
Analysts at Bernstein wrote in a report, “This year marks the market bottom, and we expect the lithium market to remain tight from 2026 to 2027.” Some enterprises also predict that the energy storage industry chain is likely to witness a cyclical price increase in 2026.
However, a senior industry insider told Huaxia Energy Network that there is considerable “water” in the current industry capacity expansion data. He said, “The current capacity expansion is more about seizing orders and stabilizing market share. Whoever possesses more production capacity will be able to secure more orders.”
Clearly, in the face of the current high-growth cycle, players in the energy storage sector are grappling with mixed emotions. On one hand, having just emerged from a downturn, energy storage practitioners deeply cherish the current prosperous times; on the other hand, no one wants to miss out on orders due to insufficient capacity, yet a stampede-style capacity expansion will inevitably lead to overcapacity.
It is worth noting that participants in this wave of “capacity expansion” are mainly leading enterprises in the industry. This may indicate that although the industry has entered a high-boom cycle, market differentiation and reshuffling are still ongoing, and hidden risks persist in the energy storage sector. Excessively aggressive capacity expansion will quickly deplete the high-growth cycle, leaving large, well-capitalized, and agile enterprises to dominate the market, while small and medium-sized enterprises will be left with nothing.
Looking at the previous path taken by the adjacent PV industry, large-scale capacity expansion driven by an order boom is a development that requires high vigilance. Companies once believed that holding orders justified confident capacity expansion, but when the industry cooled down, these orders turned into “worthless paper”.
After the announcement of China’s “dual carbon goals” in 2020, the PV industry embarked on a period of explosive growth, becoming one of the most profitable sectors in the country. Large-scale long-term contracts worth tens of billions or even hundreds of billions of yuan emerged one after another, followed closely by an industry-wide capacity expansion wave.
However, by the second half of 2023, the PV industry plunged into a downturn due to severe overcapacity. To this day, the industry has been struggling for more than two years, yet there are still no signs of excess capacity consolidation or a market rebound. Almost all leading enterprises have reported consecutive quarterly losses, and the entire industry is mired in a slump with heavy losses.
By the end of June this year, the total liabilities of 140 listed PV companies reached a staggering RMB 2.32 trillion, with an overall asset-liability ratio of 63.20%. If non-listed PV enterprises, companies queuing for IPOs, and a large number of cross-industry entrants are included, the total liabilities of the entire PV industry may have exceeded RMB 3 trillion. For those enterprises that rushed to expand capacity back then, the more frenzied their expansion was, the more painful their debt repayment is today.
The painful and profound lessons from the PV industry are still fresh in memory. The energy storage industry must absolutely avoid repeating the same mistakes. Only by abandoning the mindset of capacity competition and embracing a differentiated, high-end development path can enterprises survive healthily and sustainably, and reap the dividends of the energy storage industry’s robust growth.
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The 6-billion-yuan cylindrical battery project is about to enter trial production

According to news from “Anyi Anju”, a media center under the Rongmei Media Center of Anju District, Suining City, Sichuan Province, the cylindrical lithium battery production project of Sichuan Xiangyuan New Energy Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Xiangyuan New Energy”) has entered the final sprint stage. The project’s external wall painting, landscape construction, interior decoration and equipment installation are progressing simultaneously, and the first phase of the project will be completed and put into trial production as scheduled in January 2026. It is reported that the total investment of Xiangyuan New Energy’s cylindrical lithium battery production project is planned to be 6 billion yuan, covering an area of about 400 mu, and will be constructed in two phases. Among them, the first phase has an investment of 2.8 billion yuan, which will build 6 production lines for 18650, 2 production lines for 32140 and 1 production line for 46160 cylindrical lithium batteries, as well as PACK assembly lines. After production, the annual output value is expected to exceed 2 billion yuan; the second phase will add another 3.2 billion yuan to expand 13 cylindrical lithium battery production lines.

The project plans a total of 21 production lines, with a final daily output of 5 million cylindrical lithium batteries and an annual production capacity of 1.2 billion, making it the largest cylindrical lithium battery production base in western China.

The cylindrical lithium battery products of Xiangyuan New Energy will be widely used in electric tools, electric vehicles, UAVs, mobile power supplies, laptops, smartphones and other fields.

According to Qichacha information, Xiangyuan New Energy was established on April 23, 2025, with Tian Yongguang as its legal representative and a registered capital of 100 million yuan. Its business scope includes: battery manufacturing; battery sales; electrical equipment sales; electronic product sales; power facility equipment manufacturing; research and development of motors and their control systems; manufacturing of mechanical and electrical equipment, etc.

The major shareholder of Xiangyuan New Energy is Sichuan Xiangning New Energy Partnership (Limited Partnership), with a shareholding ratio of 80%, and the second shareholder is Suining Chengtai Project Management Co., Ltd., a county (district)-owned state-owned enterprise, with a shareholding ratio of 20%.

Market information also shows that Xiangyuan New Energy is a subsidiary of Anhui Xiangyuan New Energy Co., Ltd., which was established in August 2016, is a national-level specialized, sophisticated, distinctive and innovative enterprise and a high-tech enterprise, focusing on the research and development, production and sales of power lithium batteries.

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New Electrolyte Technology from CUHK Solves Lithium-Ion Battery Safety Issues

From rechargeable batteries in portable electronic devices to power sources for electric bicycles and new energy vehicles, safety accidents caused by lithium-ion battery fires and combustion have increasingly become the focus of global attention. According to a report by CNN on the 22nd, a new technology developed by a research team from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) can significantly reduce the risk of lithium-ion battery explosions and fires, and this technology is expected to be commercially applied within the next 3 to 5 years.
The report points out that lithium-ion batteries have been widely used in various devices ranging from smartphones to new energy vehicles. Researchers stated that lithium-ion batteries have good safety under normal usage scenarios, but improper use may lead to fire hazards and even fatal consequences in extreme cases. The reason is that the electrolyte filled inside lithium-ion batteries is flammable. When subjected to physical puncture, overcharging, extreme temperature and humidity conditions, or production process defects, the batteries will gradually lose stability. Once an abnormality occurs, the battery temperature will rise rapidly and ignite the electrolyte, thereby triggering a dangerous chain reaction known as “thermal runaway”. Relevant statistical data shows that in 2024 alone, 89 battery-related smoke, fire or high-temperature abnormal incidents were recorded in the global civil aviation transportation sector; in daily life, battery fire accidents of electric bicycles, electric scooters and other devices are also not uncommon.
To address this safety pain point, the global scientific research community has actively carried out technological research, such as developing high-temperature resistant solid or gel electrolytes to replace traditional liquid electrolytes. However, such solutions require large-scale modifications to existing battery production lines, which significantly raises the industrialization threshold and limits the popularization speed of the technology. In contrast, the new lithium-ion battery optimization scheme proposed by the CUHK team only needs to replace the chemical components in the existing electrolyte without altering the core links of the production process.
Researchers from the team explained that the core cause of lithium-ion battery fires is the decomposition of the electrolyte under high pressure, which releases a large amount of heat and triggers a chain reaction. The newly developed electrolyte adopts a binary solvent system, which can accurately block this dangerous reaction process. Under normal temperature conditions, the first solvent can maintain the compactness of the internal chemical structure of the battery, ensuring the normal performance output of the battery; when the battery temperature rises abnormally, the second solvent will quickly activate the protection mechanism, preventing fire risks from the source by loosening the chemical structure and slowing down the reactions related to thermal runaway.
CNN cited laboratory test data showing that after the lithium-ion battery adopting this new technology was punctured by a nail, the temperature only rose by 3.5 degrees Celsius; in contrast, the temperature of traditional lithium-ion batteries soared to 555 degrees Celsius under the same test conditions. Researchers emphasized that this technical scheme will not have a negative impact on the core performance and service life of the battery. Tests have shown that after 1000 charge-discharge cycles, the battery capacity can still maintain more than 80% of the initial value, fully meeting the requirements of commercial application.
It is worth noting that since this technology only involves the replacement of electrolyte components without the need to modify existing production lines, it has the basic conditions for rapid industrialization. It is estimated that after large-scale production, the cost of lithium-ion batteries adopting this technology will be basically the same as that of current mainstream products. At present, the relevant technology has entered the stage of commercialization advancement. Donald Finnegan, a senior scientist at the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, commented: “This technological breakthrough is exciting, meaning that future lithium-ion batteries will be able to withstand extreme working conditions such as high temperatures and short circuits, fundamentally avoiding fire risks.”
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Focusing on the northern market, Pengcheng Infinite launches a 27GWh cell base in Feicheng, Shandong

Recently, the People’s Government of Feicheng City reached a cooperation agreement with Pengcheng Infinite New Energy Co., Ltd. and Ruineng Power Co., Ltd. on a cell production project. The project has a planned total capacity of 27GWh with a total investment of approximately 5.5 billion yuan.

Through this cooperation, the three parties will fully combine Feicheng’s industrial advantages in the field of new battery electrode materials with the strategic layouts of Pengcheng Infinite and Ruineng Power, promote resource sharing and complementary advantages. After the project is fully put into production, it is expected to achieve an annual output value of over 8 billion yuan.

It is understood that Ruineng Power, as a leading domestic digital and intelligent green energy operation enterprise, has rich experience in power system construction, new energy development and smart grid application, and has implemented demonstration projects in many parts of the country, providing systematic solutions for the optimization of regional energy structure.

Pengcheng Infinite New Energy Co., Ltd. was established in November 2023 with a registered capital of 500 million yuan. Its business covers green industries such as new energy storage, new energy vehicles and new energy aircraft, and it is a technology-based new energy enterprise integrating R&D and manufacturing, sales, investment and operation and maintenance.

It is worth mentioning that the company is the first domestic energy storage battery R&D and manufacturing enterprise to obtain both technical authorization and after-sales service support from CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited). Within the authorized scope, it can produce energy storage batteries and related modules, electric boxes and other products, and enjoy after-sales support provided by CATL. At present, its product line covers cells of various specifications such as 280Ah, 314Ah and 587Ah.

In 2024, the shipment volume of Pengcheng Infinite’s energy storage products was close to 8GWh, including about 4.6GWh of AC-side energy storage systems and about 3.3GWh of DC-side ones.

In terms of orders, according to industry information statistics, Pengcheng Infinite has accumulated nearly 16GWh of orders in 2025. In August this year, the company successfully was selected into the 25GWh energy storage centralized procurement project of China Energy Engineering Group, winning two bids; at the same time, it was shortlisted for the energy storage cell framework procurement of State Energy Information Control, with a winning capacity of about 0.6GWh. Earlier in April, Pengcheng Infinite signed strategic cooperation agreements with multiple enterprises involving energy storage equipment scale exceeding 15GWh; in March, it reached cooperation with two enterprises on 2.5GWh energy storage equipment; in January, it signed an agreement with Times Tianyuan, a subsidiary of CATL, with an expected cooperation scale of more than 500MW in 2025.

In terms of capacity layout, in November this year, Pengcheng Infinite signed a contract for its second cell production base at the 2025 World Power Battery Conference, officially launching the construction of the Southwest Manufacturing Base located in the Energy Storage Industrial Park of Xuzhou District, Yibin City. The base has a planned annual capacity of 27GWh, focusing on the production of 500+Ah energy storage dedicated cells, with a total investment of about 4.5 billion yuan, and is expected to be put into production in the fourth quarter of 2026.

In addition, Pengcheng Infinite has set up R&D centers, marketing centers and intelligent manufacturing bases in Suzhou, Shenzhen, Xining and other places respectively. Among them, the Suzhou base has production lines for passenger car Packs and energy storage electric boxes and supporting R&D capabilities; the Qinghai base focuses on cell manufacturing with a planned annual capacity of 15GWh; the Guangdong subsidiary is mainly responsible for the investment and development of new energy projects.

The settlement in Feicheng marks the official launch of Pengcheng Infinite’s first northern cell production base, further improving its industrial layout nationwide.

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With solid-state batteries coming, will you be willing to buy an electric car?

A few days ago, in an article titled “Government Confirms Subsidy Extension for Next Year—Great News for Car Buyers” published by Automotive Commons, it was mentioned that “with the extension of subsidy policies, new energy vehicle sales in 2026 may not be too pessimistic.” However, contrary to the conventional view that subsidies would stimulate consumption, some consumers are moving in the opposite direction. Many readers have expressed views such as, “I won’t consider buying an electric car unless it comes with solid-state batteries.”

Initially, such comments might have been dismissed as casual remarks. But after multiple rounds of surveys and interviews, it was found that a notable number of individuals without cars are indeed waiting for solid-state battery technology to be implemented before considering a purchase. One interviewee stated, “I commute over 40 kilometers every day, so I do need a car. However, after three years of use, the range of current electric vehicles can degrade by nearly 20%, and replacing the battery could cost almost half the price of a new car. Since my need isn’t urgent, I’d rather wait until the technology matures.”

For these consumers, buying a car is not an immediate necessity, and delaying the decision seems reasonable. Although battery range has improved, range anxiety persists. Once battery performance declines, owners face a difficult choice between the high cost of battery replacement and the generally low resale value of electric vehicles. Moreover, rumors about solid-state batteries being introduced in the second half of 2025 have further encouraged many to adopt a “wait-and-see” approach.

In fact, these “waiters” are gradually forming a significant market force—they are not without the need for a car but are patiently waiting for key technological breakthroughs. For instance, in earlier years, they awaited breakthroughs in pure electric range exceeding 500 km and improvements in battery safety. More recently, they have been paying attention to increasing purchase subsidies. In any case, they always find reasons to postpone buying or to wait for newer technologies to mature.

And currently, their focus is squarely on solid-state batteries.

01 Is the Era of Solid-State Batteries Approaching?

This year, several automakers have directly or indirectly announced their development and production timelines for solid-state batteries. For example, MG, under SAIC Motor, announced at the Guangzhou Auto Show in November that the MG4 would be equipped with solid-state batteries. GAC Group also announced in November that it had built China’s first pilot production line for large-capacity all-solid-state batteries, with plans to implement them in Hyper models by 2026.

Beyond automakers, power battery companies like Gotion High-Tech have also reported progress. The company stated that its self-developed semi-solid-state batteries have completed real-vehicle testing across multiple models, achieving an energy density of over 300 Wh/kg. Vehicles equipped with these batteries could achieve a range exceeding 1,000 km, with mass production expected within the year.

From laboratory research to accelerated industry investment, and further supported by policy encouragement, every step in solid-state battery development has captured the attention of investors, consumers, and related enterprises. For instance, when SAIC Motor revealed that its new generation of solid-state batteries is slated for mass production in 2026, the company’s stock price surged, and the solid-state battery sector also saw significant gains.

This market enthusiasm not only highlights the strategic value of solid-state batteries in energy transition and automotive industry upgrades but also signals a critical development phase for the technology. Its broad prospects and potential are increasingly becoming a consensus both within and outside the industry.

For consumers, the advantages of solid-state batteries address several pain points of current electric vehicles:

  • Extended Range: Solid-state batteries use solid electrolytes, offering energy densities two to three times higher than current liquid batteries. This means that within the same volume, ranges of 500–1,000 km could be achieved. Companies like Toyota and CATL have set breaking this threshold as a key technical goal.

  • Safety Breakthroughs: Solid electrolytes are non-flammable, fundamentally eliminating the risk of thermal runaway. They remain stable even under extreme conditions such as punctures or compression, a feature highly appealing to safety-conscious consumers.

  • Longevity and Resale Value: Solid-state batteries demonstrate superior cycling stability, with lab data suggesting lifespans two to four times longer than traditional batteries. This could reduce the need for battery replacements during a vehicle’s lifecycle and improve the resale value of used electric vehicles.

Given these advantages, solid-state batteries—even before mass adoption—are already seen as a critical factor in accelerating electric vehicle adoption and potentially reshaping the power battery industry landscape.

02 Challenges to Mass Production Remain

Despite their advantages, the path to commercializing solid-state batteries is far from smooth.

Foremost is the issue of cost. Core materials for solid-state batteries—particularly sulfide electrolytes—account for 60%–80% of total battery costs. Industry analysis suggests that even with scaled production, initial costs will remain significantly higher than those of traditional lithium-ion batteries. This cost pressure will initially fall on suppliers, then on automakers, and may ultimately be passed on to consumers, potentially raising the price of vehicles equipped with solid-state batteries by over 30%.

Additionally, transitioning from lab to production involves overcoming significant technical hurdles. Robin Zeng, Chairman of CATL, noted that the maturity of all-solid-state battery technology currently stands at only level 4 out of 9. Key challenges include the stability of solid electrolyte materials, poor ion transport efficiency due to inadequate solid-solid interface contact, and the risk of lithium dendrites piercing the electrolyte layer. While solutions exist in laboratory settings, consistency and reliability in mass production remain uncertain, making large-scale commercialization impractical in the short term.

Furthermore, although solid-state batteries theoretically support faster charging, practical applications are constrained by factors such as thermal management and interface impedance. Currently demonstrated products have yet to show a decisive advantage in fast-charging performance—a critical aspect of the daily user experience.

Faced with consumer anticipation, automakers find themselves in a dilemma. On one hand, they must manage inventory pressures for existing electric models, especially in a market where subsidy extensions coincide with divided consumer willingness to buy. On the other hand, manufacturers are racing to announce solid-state battery roadmaps to avoid falling behind in the next wave of technological competition. The repeated announcements of solid-state and semi-solid-state battery production plans by major automakers have raised market expectations and intensified consumer wait-and-see attitudes. An industry insider admitted, “We know some consumers are waiting for solid-state batteries, but widespread commercial use will take at least three to five years. In the meantime, we need to convince them of the value of current technologies.”

For the “waiters,” however, waiting also comes with its own costs—technological evolution never stops. Beyond solid-state batteries, future advancements may include lithium-air batteries, sodium-ion batteries, and other technologies. Always waiting for the “next big thing” could mean never making a purchase decision.

For now, the market seems to offer compromise solutions for those who need a vehicle but are unwilling to wait indefinitely. Semi-solid-state batteries are emerging as a transitional technology, and battery leasing models allow consumers to avoid the risks of battery degradation and depreciation.

Ultimately, the decision to buy or wait depends on individual needs. As some netizens have quipped, “Those who are ready to buy will buy at any time, while those who choose to wait may never lose out.” Whatever the choice, the market will continue to adapt and provide answers.

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