CATL earmarks 30 billion yuan for critical minerals security as Q1 profits surge 49%

Published Wed, Apr 15, 2026 · 11:13 PM

[SHANGHAI] The world’s biggest electric-vehicle battery-maker, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL), is planning to expand its footprint in critical minerals and strengthen supply-chain security.

CATL said its board has approved the creation of a new wholly-owned subsidiary with a registered capital of 30 billion yuan (S$5.6 billion), according to a statement on Wednesday (Apr 15). The business scope includes mineral resources exploration, metals processing and sales of chemical products.

The unit will act as CATL’s investment and operations platform for the new-energy mining sector, the company said in the statement. It will consolidate existing mining-related assets and “actively” expand into domestic and international resource projects based on its battery demand.

Battery manufacturers have been grappling with higher costs and supply uncertainty for raw materials such as lithium, whose price has surged more than 140 per cent over the past year. CATL has also been advancing sodium-ion batteries for EVs, a potential alternative to today’s lithium-ion technology.

Bloomberg News reported last week that CATL has tapped the founder and ex-chairman of Zijin Mining Group as an advisor for its growing mining business, according to people familiar with the matter.

Geopolitical tensions and concerns over mineral supply have become key challenges for the battery supply chain. Nickel prices on the London Metal Exchange are trading near their highest levels since 2024, as major producer Indonesia has curbed ore output. And benchmark cobalt prices have more than doubled following export restrictions from the Democratic Republic of Congo, a top cobalt-producing country.

CATL runs a lepidolite mine in China’s Jiangxi province, but it has been mothballed since August. The company said it has gradually increased exposure to upstream materials including lithium, nickel and phosphorus.

More broadly, the battery giant is at the forefront of the boom in large-scale energy storage fuelled by demand from power grids and data centres. It may also stand to gain from the worldwide desire to electrify power supplies, particularly after the unprecedented shock caused by the war in Iran.

In a separate statement on Wednesday, CATL posted a 49 per cent year-on-year jump in net income in the first quarter to 20.7 billion yuan, beating analysts’ estimates. Revenue reached 129 billion yuan, up 52 per cent from a year ago. The first-quarter result builds on a 42 per cent surge in annual profit last year. BLOOMBERG