Tianneng Power plans to expand lithium battery production capacity by 80%

Zhang Tianren, Chairman of Tianneng Power (00819), said that the group is focusing on developing its lithium power battery business and has officially started the capacity expansion of the Phase III project. The lithium battery production capacity will be increased from the original 1.25GWH to 2.25GWH, or an increase of 80%.

Tianneng New Energy Battery Workshop

Tianneng Power's expansion of lithium battery production capacity is due to the rapid explosion in demand for new energy vehicles.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced that the sales volume of new energy vehicles in November was 24,664 units, a 2.4-fold increase from 7,251 units in November 2014. The sales volume of new energy vehicles this year has entered a rapid growth trajectory, with monthly growth of about 4,000 units in the past five months, and the market sales are booming.

As an important component of new energy vehicles, the demand for lithium batteries has also increased exponentially, and has been in short supply throughout the year. The top domestic battery companies are all expanding their production capacity.

Tianneng Power has made the most comprehensive preparations in terms of production capacity reserves, technology reserves and customer resource development to meet the peak period of the new energy vehicle industry in the next decade.

Zhang Tianren said that the explosive growth of the lithium-ion new energy vehicle industry is inseparable from the huge subsidies from the Chinese government, but the increasing maturity of battery technology and market demand are also important driving forces. The lithium battery market will inevitably go through a process of elimination. In the future, battery suppliers with a certain scale and R&D capabilities will continue to be strong, and companies with a complete battery industry chain will inevitably have cost advantages; while small battery manufacturers with backward technology may face the possibility of being integrated by the market.

Data from Tianneng Research Institute also shows that Tianneng Power's R&D funds are undergoing structural adjustments, leaning towards the field of high-end product R&D. In September this year, Tianneng Power's independently developed "lithium battery management system for new energy vehicles" has passed expert appraisal and acceptance, and has achieved mass production. As for the field of high-end product R&D, the group plans to integrate battery management technology with vehicle control system research, and combine automotive battery performance with post-service management through big data, the Internet, etc. At the same time, Tianneng Research Institute has completed the pilot stage of lithium-rich manganese cathode materials and has now entered the pilot stage. The specific energy of lithium-rich manganese cathode materials can reach up to 972WH/KG (the national 13th Five-Year Plan target is 350WH/KG). Once the R&D results are industrialized, this will become an important milestone in the history of lithium battery development.