The,Coordinated,Development,of,Lithium,Industry,Needs,Precise,Efforts

The Coordinated Development of Lithium Industry Needs Precise Efforts

Duan Debing, vice president of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, introduced the development of lithium industry in China at the second meeting of the third Council of Lithium Branch of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association held in late August. He said that benefiting from the rapid development of China"s lithium battery new energy industry, China has become the world"s largest producer and consumer of basic lithium battery materials. At present, China"s lithium industry has entered a period of rapid development, with industrial investment increasing year by year, enterprise scale expanding, scientific and technological innovation advancing, production technology gradually improving, and its influence at home and abroad increasing. At the same time, it also contributes to the development of new energy vehicles, the green development of the industry, and the realization of the "carbon peaking and carbon neutrality" goal in China. However, it is necessary to pay full attention to the operational risks of the whole industry chain and realize coordinated development, so that the industry development can be stable and far-reaching.

Zhao Jiasheng, former vice president of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association and president of Lithium Branch, said that at present, China has certain resource advantages in developing lithium industry. China is a big country in lithium smelting, processing, and consumption, and has been ranked as the largest lithium salt producer in the world for many years. In 2021, China"s lithium salt production was about 480000 tons (equivalent to lithium carbonate), accounting for 73% of the global total production; The output of lithium battery cathode materials was about 1,111,700 tons, accounting for about 75% of the world"s total; In terms of lithium battery link, in 2021, the cumulative output of power batteries in China was about 220GWh (gigawatt-hour), accounting for about 59% of the world"s total; In terms of import and export, China is the world"s largest importer of lithium raw materials and exporter of lithium hydroxide products. In 2021, the global output of lithium and its derivatives was equivalent to about 660000 tons of lithium carbonate, with a year-on-year increase of more than 50%. The increase in output mainly came from China and Chile.

Zhu Yuhua, a member of the National Expert Advisory Committee on the Development of New Materials Industry and a special consultant of Lithium Branch of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, said that the coordinated development of lithium industry is imperative. At present, the main problem of lithium industry is that the coordinated development of industry is insufficient, and the phenomenon of "small head and big tail" exists in the industrial chain, forming an inverted triangle industrial form. Power battery is not only the power of new energy vehicles, but also the power of lithium industry development. However, in terms of capacity of supporting industries, the battery is larger than the cathode material, the cathode material is larger than the precursor, the precursor is larger than the lithium salt, and the lithium salt is larger than the concentrate. The upstream capacity bottleneck seriously restricts the downstream capacity, especially lithium salt and lithium ore. Due to the long investment cycle, the actual capacity can"t meet the urgent demand of the downstream, resulting in the mismatch between supply and demand, resulting in high raw material prices.

Wu Yanhua, Secretary-General of Lithium Branch of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, said that in the whole lithium industry chain, the construction period of downstream demand-side lithium batteries is relatively short, which can be completed and put into production in about 6 months at the fastest; The construction period of cathode materials is 1 to 1.5 years; The construction period of lithium salt is 2 to 3 years; The construction period of lithium resource project is the longest, with the construction time of lithium ore project ranging from 3 to 5 years and that of salt lake brine project ranging from 5 to 8 years. Therefore, when the demand of the downstream market is high, the lithium resource development cycle is long, the capital investment is high, the project construction is difficult, and the industry cycle cannot be grasped in time, resulting in the mismatch of lithium salt supply and demand.

China"s lithium industry has great potential for coordinated development, which can be fully explored. The domestic production and sales of new energy vehicles are booming, with the sales volume reaching 2.6 million in the first half of the year. The sales volume of new energy passenger cars accounts for 24% of the total sales volume of passenger cars, and the development momentum is good. China"s sales volume of new energy vehicles has accounted for about 60% of the world"s total, and the development of small cars is expected to realize "lane change and overtaking". China is a big country of new energy vehicles, and has established a "whole life cycle" industrial chain of lithium from upstream lithium resource development, lithium salt production, midstream cathode material and lithium battery production, downstream terminal new energy vehicle production and lithium battery recycling. At present, downstream battery factories or vehicle factories such as CATL, BYD, EVE, and Hefei Guoxuan are actively laying out the development of upstream lithium resources to ensure the supply of lithium raw materials in the industrial chain.

In view of the coordinated development of lithium industry, Zhu Yuhua believes that efforts should be made from three aspects. First, the upstream and downstream should jointly improve the industrial chain. The upstream lithium mine and lithium salt enterprises should increase investment, release the existing production capacity to the maximum extent, and keep the reasonable price of concentrate and lithium salt. Downstream enterprises should understand the current supply and demand situation, actively communicate with upstream enterprises, establish a long-term cooperative supply and demand relationship, and form a "community of enterprise destiny" in various forms such as investment and financing. Second, relevant government departments can do something, addressing the actual shortage of lithium resources, promote the approval of domestic exploration rights and mining rights, and solve the problem of lithium resource supply based on domestic reserves. China is rich in lithium salt lake and lepidolite resources, so enterprises should be encouraged to increase their development efforts when the environmental protection requirements are met. At the same time, attention should be paid to the development of foreign lithium resources. Generally speaking, foreign lithium resources are of good quality, especially the lithium mines in Australia and the salt lake resources in the "lithium triangle" of South America, which deserve attention. In the process of developing foreign lithium resources, financial institutions should increase their support for lithium enterprises to "go global". Third, relevant intermediary organizations should play a unique role in guiding the sound development of the industry. As the liaison organization among the government, industry, and enterprises, the Lithium Branch of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association should continue to implement the national "carbon peaking and carbon neutrality" strategy and new energy strategy, and play an active role in guiding the rational investment and development of lithium enterprises.