China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt said on Wednesday its PT Huayue nickel and cobalt smelting joint venture (JV) in Indonesia has successfully churned out its first output after recently commencing trial production…The JV, in which Huayou partners Tsingshan Holding Group and China Molybdenum Co, is the second of a number of closely watched high-pressure acid leach (HPAL) projects in Indonesia to reach the commissioning stage after Lygend Mining’s plant achieved first production in May…An inspection confirmed the quality of the product, a mixed hydroxide precipitate containing both nickel and cobalt, met the required level, Huayou said in a filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange, hailing the feat as a “milestone”…On a metals content basis, PT Huayue, which is located in Morowali on the island of Sulawesi, is designed to produce 60,000 tonnes of nickel and 7,800 tonnes of cobalt per year.

Huayou will supply 300,000-350,000t of ternary precursors in 2022-25 to Easpring on the condition that Huayou provides a competitive pricing mechanism for metal feedstock purchases and processing fees for precursors…Huayou earlier this month also signed a strategic co-operation agreement with power battery material manufacturer Ningbo Ronbay New Energy Technology for battery ternary precursor supply…Huayou is the world's largest cobalt refinery, with a design capacity of 39,000 t/yr of metal equivalent for refined cobalt products, including cobalt salts, cobalt tetroxide, NCM ternary precursors and cobalt metal. It is on track to lift its total NCM precursor capacity to 200,000 t/yr in 2022…Easpring is the first Chinese CAM manufacturer that will establish an NCM business in Europe, with NCM and lithium cobalt oxide its main products. It expects global lithium battery production capacity to soar by 264pc to 222GWh in 2025 from 61GWh in 2020…Chinese battery and material companies have accelerated strengthening their partnerships in recent years to ensure safety of feedstock supplies and to extend their industry supply chains.

When it comes to the unleash of electric and autonomous vehicles, the first name that appears globally is Tesla whose market value for electric cars stood $1tn. But, behind this success, there is also the deep story of China's manufacturing dominance. Interestingly, Tesla’s manufacturing unit that is located in Shanghai manufactures more vehicles than the one located in California…The batteries used in the cars are solely manufactured in China and also the minerals that power the batteries are mined and refined by the Chinese private firms. To reduce environmental pollution and prevent release of harmful gases, the entire automobile sector is now transforming into battery-based electric and due to this companies from various parts of the world are involved in the rat-race of enhancing their battery supply chain as well as extraction of minerals…A year back, there was a total sales of 1.3 million vehicles by China, which is more than 38-40 percent of international sales and it has made the country the globe's largest market for electric cars. Experts also stated that around 30 percent of the international EV battery market is largely dominated by CATL, a Chinese battery maker and 85 percent of Cobalt has been shipped by Chinese refineries. Cobalt is basically required to perk-up the longevity of lithium-ion batteries. Throughout the world, a huge volume of Cobalt is shipped from Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where Chinese firms control 70 percent of mining in the region…In fact, back in August this year, one of the leading Chinese mining firms, Molybdenum Company (CMOC) has proclaimed to augment production of cobalt and copper with an investment of $2.5 bn. It is then followed by purchasing a share of 95 percent with an investment of $550 bn in Kisanfu Cobalt and Copper mines. In the region of DRC, at least three cobalt-copper mines are spearheaded by Chinese magnate Huayou Cobalt and is claimed to be an imperative player in the supply chain segment.

The shift from gas-powered vehicles to electric models is accelerating among Japanese automakers and foreign rivals, fueling a race to secure high-performance batteries crucial for extending drive distance and other features…But the government’s subsidies to domestic automakers are a drop in the bucket when compared to competitors such as China, and Japanese companies are hesitant to shoulder the burden of investment alone…When it comes to the volume of production, Japanese battery makers can’t compete with Chinese and South Korean companies, said Tan Jin, a senior researcher at Mizuho Bank well versed in the automotive industry…Toyota Motor Corp. plans to roll out 8 million electric-powered vehicles in 2030, accounting for 80 percent of global production…Two million units of that will consist of fully electric and fuel-cell hydrogen cell-powered models…Toyota is expected to build its first battery factory in the United States for hybrids by 2025. By 2030, the company’s investment in the manufacture of batteries will total about 380 billion yen. The automaker also plans to set up a new company with Toyota Tsusho Corp., an affiliated trading house, to operate the U.S. battery factory…Toyota Tsusho procures lithium, a material vital to manufacturing batteries, in Argentina…“How to secure raw materials is a big challenge for us,” a senior official with the carmaker said of teaming up with Toyota Tsusho over the battery production. “(The procurement of battery materials) is an area in which we will not fight alone.” Ichiro Kashitani, president of Toyota Tsusho, said the company’s participation in the project is intended to let the automaker focus on the manufacture of vehicles as it will take care of the procurement side. As the cost to transport batteries does not come cheap, car companies are also moving to produce automotive batteries in markets where they build their vehicles…Honda Motor Co. has set a goal to make all its new cars EVs and FCVs in 2040. It has been developing all-solid-state batteries on its own, eying their introduction to its vehicles in the latter half of the 2020s. Nissan Motor Co. said it will invest 2 trillion yen over five years to speed up vehicle electrification. It also plans to commercialize all-solid-state batteries by fiscal 2028. Panasonic, which once was the global leader in car battery production, has fallen to third place in terms of the world share after South Korea’s LG Energy Solution Co…Regarding subsides for the construction of battery factories in Japan, a senior trade ministry official said, “We want to secure the production base in Japan to prepare for the global race over batteries as demand for batteries is only going to grow in the years ahead.”

Vietnam's largest conglomerate Vingroup is in talks with investors, including Qatar's sovereign fund and BlackRock, to raise about $1 billion in equity for its car unit, three sources aware of the matter said…The fundraising exercise comes as VinFast, Vingroup's automobile arm, is betting big on the U.S. market, where it hopes that its electric SUVs and a battery leasing model will be enough to woo consumers away from the likes of Tesla and General Motors…If successful, it is likely to end up as Vietnam's largest private fundraising, underscoring heightened investor interest in Southeast Asia, a region where ride-hailing and delivery giants Grab and GoTo have raised billions of dollars…The fundraising move also shows electric vehicle projects remain a major draw for investors…"Electric vehicles are the topic of the year and there's huge investor interest," said one of the sources. Vingroup is in discussions for the fundraising ahead of VinFast's potential U.S. listing that could take place as early as next year, said the sources, who declined to be identified as negotiations are still ongoing…VinFast plans a U.S. listing within the next couple of years, its chief executive told Reuters earlier this month, aiming to join a growing list of electric vehicle startups that have taken advantage of investor enthusiasm and raised money…VinFast, established in 2017 as part of Vingroup, plans to start producing electric cars in the United States in the second half of 2024. It unveiled two electric sport utility vehicles, VF e35 and VF e36, at the Los Angeles Auto Show this month.

Higher raw material costs could push the average price of a lithium-ion battery pack to $135 per kilowatt-hour in 2022, a 2.3% gain from this year’s level, according to BloombergNEF’s 2021 Battery Price Survey. It would mark the first increase in prices since at least 2010, when the average cost was $1 200/kWh. BNEF still predicts battery prices can fall as low as $100/kWh by 2024, though that timing is now less certain. Analysts say that target could be pushed back two years if inflation pressures persist, hurting the economics of energy storage technology…The inflation threat presents a risk to the transition from fossil fuels, with ever-cheaper lithium-ion batteries critical for the mainstream adoption of electric vehicles. Ford Motor and Renault have both set battery pack price targets of $80/kWh by 2030, and Nissan announced Monday a strategy to bring the cost down to $75/kWh by 2028.

Electric vehicle charging stations are set to be installed at most ONroute rest stops in Ontario by next summer…Energy Minister Todd Smith and Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney will make the announcement later today and say each site will have at least two chargers, with busier locations equipped with more…The pay-per-use charging stations will be installed by Hydro One and Ontario Power Generation's joint network called Ivy, and won't involve direct funding from the provincial government itself…"This deployment will reduce barriers to EV ownership, supporting Ontario's growing EV manufacturing market, critical minerals sector and help achieve Ontario's goal of building at least 400,000 electric and hybrid vehicles by 2030," Smith said in a statement…Natural Resources Canada provided a $3.45-million loan to Ivy for the project, amounting to 30 per cent of the total cost.