Hanrui Cobalt to raise up to ¥2.353B via A-share private placement for nickel expansion
What's the deal? Hanrui Cobalt (300618.SZ), a Chinese cobalt and nickel producer, announced on June 5 that it plans to raise up to ¥2.353B ($323M) through a private placement of A-shares. The funds will go towards building an annual production facility for 40,000 tonnes of electrolytic nickel and 40,000 tonnes of battery-grade nickel sulphate in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province. Total project investment stands at ¥2.003B, with a 24-month construction timeline.
The same day brought a flurry of other moves across China's energy and materials sector. Tungsten giant China Tungsten High-Tech (market cap: ¥159.7B) appointed a new chairman after Li Zhongze resigned. Guangdong Electric Power approved a ¥424M investment in a 200MW/400MWh semi-solid-state battery storage project in Zhuhai. And Jinduicheng Molybdenum plans to invest ¥510M in a joint venture to build a molybdenum-based advanced materials base in Anhui.
Why now? China's battery supply chain is racing to secure upstream materials as demand for electric vehicles and energy storage systems continues to surge. Nickel is a critical input for high-energy-density battery cathodes, and domestic production capacity has become a strategic priority as geopolitical tensions cloud overseas supply routes.
The energy storage push is equally urgent. Guangdong Electric Power's semi-solid-state battery project reflects a broader national drive to deploy grid-scale storage alongside rapid renewable energy buildout.
What could go wrong? Nickel prices have been volatile, squeezed between Indonesian oversupply and uncertain EV demand growth. Hanrui Cobalt's heavy capital commitment — funded through share dilution — carries execution risk if nickel markets soften during the two-year build period.
For energy storage, the economics remain tight. Guangdong Electric Power's Zhuhai project shows a post-tax payback period of 15.57 years and a capital return rate of just 5.1%, leaving slim margin for error.
The signal: China's energy and materials companies are making big, coordinated bets across the battery value chain — from raw nickel to grid storage. The pattern is clear: vertical integration and domestic self-sufficiency are the strategic priorities, even when short-term returns look modest. As the country's coking coal market also shows strength (the June price expectation index hit 86%, well above the 50% threshold), the broader commodities complex is tilting bullish on China's industrial trajectory.
Read more: jiemian.com
