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Japan's Waste Disposal Law Amendment: New Metal Resource Control Regulations and ReactionsOn April 9, 2026, the Japanese Cabinet officially approved the latest amendment to the Waste Disposal and Public Cleansing Act (commonly known as the "Waste Cleansing Act"). The core of the amendment is to upgrade metal recycling operations from a notification system to a permit system, and to impose a new obligation requiring confirmation from the Minister of the Environment for scrap metal exports.
May 1, 2026 10:27- [LG Energy Solution posts Q1 operating loss of 207.8 billion won]
LG Energy Solution reported consolidated revenue of 6.6 trillion won in the first quarter, up 1.2% quarter-on-quarter (including approximately 189.8 billion won in North American production incentives). During the same period, it recorded an operating loss of 207.8 billion won. Shipments of pouch-type electric vehicle (EV) batteries declined due to inventory adjustments by major North American customers.
Apr 30, 2026 22:55 - [SMM Analysis] CATL Reshapes Its Mining Strategy
In mid-April, CATL announced plans to invest 30 billion yuan to establish a wholly-owned subsidiary, Times Resources Group, registered in Xiamen and positioned as a professional investment, operation, and management platform in the new energy minerals sector. This major move is not only a key step for CATL in building a closed-loop entire industry chain of "ore — materials — battery — recycling," but will also inject strong momentum into the extraction and reuse of rare and precious metal resources, driving the battery recycling industry from standardized development toward a new phase of technological breakthroughs and scale expansion. The core mission of Times Resources Group is to integrate global critical minerals resources such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt, while expanding into high-quality rare and precious metal mining projects. From an industry perspective, lithium, nickel, and cobalt are core raw materials for power batteries, while rare and precious metals such as gold, silver, and platinum group metals are indispensable in electronic devices and catalysts. Through this 30 billion yuan capital deployment, CATL can both ensure that its primary lithium resources self-supply rate rises above 35% and keep lithium chemicals costs below 50,000 yuan/mt, while also establishing stable raw material connection channels for rare and precious metal regeneration after battery recycling through full industry chain control of mineral resources. More notably, CATL hired Chen Jinghe, founder of Zijin Mining, as a mining consultant, leveraging his extensive experience in mineral exploration and extraction to further optimize resource development processes. This means the upstream extraction segment will place greater emphasis on green and efficient technology applications, such as adopting efficient leaching technology for low-grade ore and comprehensive recovery processes for rare and precious metal associated ore, improving resource utilization rate from the source, laying the raw material foundation for rare and precious metal regeneration in subsequent battery recycling, and achieving synergy between "primary extraction + secondary recycling."
Apr 30, 2026 19:03 - [Chengxin: ~10 GWh Overseas Orders; Sodium Battery Deal with CATL]
July 30 – Chengxin has locked in ~10 GWh of overseas orders (Europe 40%, Americas 35%, SE Asia 25%), including a GWh project in Germany and a data center project in the US. To address rising lithium costs, it signed a 3-year, 60 GWh sodium-ion battery deal with CATL. After mass production, sodium batteries will offer cost advantages and complement lithium batteries, starting with low-temperature and extreme-environment applications.
Apr 30, 2026 17:24 - [Hyperstrong: ~10 GWh Overseas Orders Locked; Partners with CATL on Sodium-Ion Batteries]
July 30 – Hyperstrong (688411.SH) has locked in ~10 GWh of overseas orders (Europe 40%, Americas 35%, SE Asia 25%), including a German GWh project and a US data center project. To counter rising lithium costs, it's advancing sodium-ion batteries via a 3-year, 60 GWh deal with CATL. After mass production, sodium batteries will offer cost advantages and complement lithium batteries, with initial deployment in low-temperature and extreme environments.
Apr 30, 2026 17:18 - Some Enterprises Reduced or Halted Production Early, Weekly Operating Rate of Lead-Acid Batteries Declined [SMM Weekly Lead-Acid Battery Operating Rate Comment]
According to SMM, the weekly comprehensive operating rate of lead-acid battery enterprises across five provinces was 65.5% from April 24 to April 30, 2026, down 3.09 percentage points WoW. Recently, the traditional off-season trend in the lead-acid battery market continued. With the Labour Day holiday approaching, producers successively planned to take holidays, with most Labour Day breaks lasting 2-5 days. Some enterprises chose to take early holidays or cut production at the month-end of April, leading to an early decline in the weekly operating rate of lead-acid batteries this week. Next week, as the Labour Day holiday period is underway, enterprise holiday time will increase, and the weekly operating rate of lead-acid batteries will weaken further.
Apr 30, 2026 16:25
Announcements
- Price[SMM Announcement] Launch of CIF Premiums by Lead Content for Lead Ingots from Vietnam and Malaysia
[SMM Announcement] Launch of CIF Premiums by Lead Content for Lead Ingots from Vietnam and Malaysia
PriceApr 15, 2026 09:23 Dear User, Greetings! With the rapid development and continuous technological iterations in the solid-state battery industry, solid-state batteries have garnered increasing attention. As indispensable key materials for solid-state batteries, the market demand for sulfide electrolytes and oxide electrolytes is also surging accordingly. The quality of pentaphosphorus pentasulfide and lithium bromide, important raw materials for sulfide electrolytes, plays a significant role in influencing sulfide electrolytes. In the realm of oxide electrolytes, the application status of LLZO (lithium lanthanum zirconium oxide) in the semi-solid and solid-state battery markets is gradually rising. SMM is committed to supporting upstream and downstream enterprises in the solid-state battery industry chain, helping them gain comprehensive insights into the market dynamics of solid-state battery electrolytes. By providing real-time and accurate spot cargo and price information, we assist enterprises in effectively reducing risks and costs in market transactions, enhancing their core competitiveness and market adaptability. Simultaneously, SMM actively delves into research on the solid-state battery industry chain, striving to build a more transparent, fair, and efficient market environment for the industry through deepened industry analysis and continuous improvement of the knowledge system. After a period of consolidation and market surveys, SMM plans to introduce two important raw materials for sulfide electrolytes in solid-state batteries—pentaphosphorus pentasulfide and lithium bromide—along with a new price point for oxide electrolyte LLZO, starting from January 28. Details are as follows: Pentaphosphorus pentasulfide: P2S5 content ≥99.9%, Lithium bromide: LiBr content ≥99.9% Oxide electrolyte LLZO: powder, D50 ≤1μm. Price note: The above three product price points are all delivery-to-factory prices, inclusive of 13% VAT. Shanghai Metals Market New Energy Research Team January 24, 2026
PriceJan 24, 2026 22:26- Price[SMM Announcement] Announcement on Updates to Secondary Refined Lead Price Standards and Methodology
Dear users, On August 29, 2025, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the Standardization Administration of China jointly issued the "Secondary Lead Ingot (GB/T 21181-2025)" (hereinafter referred to as the "new national standard"), which will officially take effect on March 1, 2026. Compared to the "Secondary Lead and Lead Alloy Ingot (GB/T 21181-2017)" (hereinafter referred to as the "old national standard"), the new national standard revised the scope. It changed from "This standard applies to secondary lead and its alloy ingots produced by smelting and processing using lead-containing scrap as raw material, mainly used in batteries, alloys, chemical industry, and other fields" to "This document applies to secondary lead ingots produced by pyrometallurgical smelting and processing using waste lead-acid batteries and recycled lead and lead alloy materials as raw materials, mainly used in lead-acid batteries, alloys, chemical industry, and other fields." Regarding secondary lead grades, the ZSPb99.994 and ZSPb99.992 secondary lead ingot grades were deleted the ZSPb99.990, ZSPb99.986, and ZSPb99.983 secondary lead ingot grades were added. Details are as follows: With the development and changes in the secondary lead industry, the actual production and use of secondary lead in the market in recent years have already diverged significantly from the old national standard. In addition to changes in the main element lead content, the bismuth (Bi) content has also undergone substantial changes. According to SMM's understanding of major producers and users of secondary lead, the distribution by bismuth content usage is as follows: enterprises using bismuth content ≤0.008% account for about 15% those using ≤0.012% account for about 60% and those using ≤0.015% account for about 25%. Furthermore, based on its price assessment methodology, SMM solicited market suggestions on the specifications for the secondary refined lead price. Market feedback recommended that the price collection standard for SMM's secondary refined lead price reference the new national standard for secondary lead, with grade ZSPb99.99 accounting for 24%, grade ZSPb99.986 for 66%, and grade ZSPb99.983 for 10%. Considering that the current actual usage in the secondary lead market covers the three grades specified in the new national standard for secondary lead, SMM will define the specifications for the national and regional prices of secondary refined lead as ZSPb99.983-99.99%, based on real market transaction conditions. The new standard will be officially implemented from January 1, 2026, serving as the reference standard for SMM's price assessments. During this period, SMM will continue to collect suggestions and feedback from all parties, closely follow changes in the lead industry chain market, and identify and optimize SMM prices to better serve the industry! For any questions regarding prices, please contact lead analyst Wenming Xia at 021-51666839. SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. Lead and Zinc Research Division December 25, 2025
PriceDec 25, 2025 09:41