In the fields of precious and rare metals, compared with well-known categories such as gold, silver, and platinum-group metals, osmium has always remained a niche yet highly distinctive presence. With its unmatched physicochemical properties, it has become an indispensable key material in high-end industry and scientific research. Even though it receives limited market attention, it still possesses irreplaceable value. This article will provide a comprehensive breakdown of osmium metal, covering its basic properties, resource supply, application scenarios, and market characteristics, to offer a full understanding of this “king of density.” I. First Encounter with Osmium: A Hardcore Outlier Among the Platinum-Group Metals Osmium, with the chemical symbol Os and atomic number 76, belongs to the platinum-group metals. It is a Group VIII transition metal on the periodic table and also one of the rarest metals found in nature. As one of the six major members of the platinum-group metal family, osmium has no independent ore deposits and is commonly associated with platinum, iridium, ruthenium, rhodium, and palladium. It can only be recovered through purification during platinum ore smelting and cannot be extracted through standalone large-scale mining. This inherent characteristic directly defines its scarcity. Osmium’s physicochemical properties are truly unique in the world of metals, with highly recognizable core characteristics: first, it has the highest density in the world. Under standard conditions at 20°C, its density reaches 22.59 g/cm³, far exceeding that of gold (19.32 g/cm³) and platinum (21.45 g/cm³). It is currently the densest naturally occurring metal known, and at the same volume, it weighs far more than various conventional precious metals. Second, it demonstrates excellent high-temperature resistance, with a melting point of 3,033°C and a boiling point exceeding 5,000°C. It remains highly stable in high-temperature environments and can adapt to various industrial and scientific applications under extreme heat. Third, it has outstanding hardness and strong corrosion resistance. With a Mohs hardness of 7, it is hard, durable, and wear-resistant, and is difficult to corrode under conventional acidic or alkaline conditions. However, its drawbacks are also quite evident: it is highly brittle and has extremely poor plasticity, making it impossible to process through conventional mechanical methods, so it is mostly used in powder or alloy form. A key safety precaution must be emphasized here: when osmium metal is heated in air to above 100°C, it slowly oxidizes to form osmium tetroxide (OsO₄). This substance is highly irritating, highly volatile, and somewhat toxic. Therefore, the entire process involving osmium, including production smelting, storage and transportation, and deep processing, must be carried out under the protection of inert gas and in strict compliance with operational standards. These exceptionally high compliance and control requirements further raise the barriers to osmium’s production and application. II. Extreme Scarcity: Osmium’s Resource Endowment and Supply Landscape Osmium is far rarer than commonly recognized precious metals such as gold and platinum, and it can be regarded as a “niche treasure” in the precious metals sector. Relevant data show that the average abundance of osmium in the Earth’s crust is only about 0.001 ppm, making it one of the least abundant stable elements in the crust. Globally, identified recoverable reserves are extremely limited, and resource distribution is highly concentrated, without the formation of widely distributed ore deposits. Supply side, the scarcity of osmium is even more pronounced. As there are no standalone mines, global osmium production is entirely dependent on platinum ore mining and smelting, with capacity remaining at an extremely low level year-round. Global annual production is about 1 mt (data from the International Platinum Group Metals Association), while China’s annual production is less than 100 kg, with supply far below that of other platinum group metals. From the global supply landscape, traditional major platinum group metal-producing countries such as South Africa and Russia control the vast majority of the world’s osmium resources and smelting capacity. Industry supply shows a highly monopolized pattern, with extremely low supply elasticity. Minor changes in mining progress, geopolitical conditions, environmental protection-related controls policies, and platinum group metal smelting capacity all directly affect global osmium supply. This dual characteristic of “inherent resource scarcity + constrained supply” has kept the osmium market in a long-term tight supply-demand balance and has also given it strong price resilience and fluctuation elasticity, securing a unique position in the rare metals market. 3. Exclusive to High-End, Cutting-Edge Applications: Core Application Scenarios of Osmium Although osmium has limited production and a relatively narrow range of applications, its exceptional physical and chemical properties have enabled it to take root precisely in high-end niche fields, making it an irreplaceable core material in many advanced applications. Downstream demand is concentrated and highly rigid, with no low-cost substitutes currently available. Its core applications are mainly concentrated in four major fields: 1. Special Hard Alloys: Core Raw Material for High-End Wear-Resistant Components Osmium-based alloys made by melting osmium with metals such as iridium and platinum combine ultra-high hardness, wear resistance, and corrosion resistance, making them key core materials for high-end precision instruments. These alloys are widely used in high-precision bearings for high-end watches and precision instruments, premium fountain pen nibs, professional turntable styluses, medical precision scalpels, and high-end wear-resistant mechanical components. They can significantly improve component service life and durability, making them suitable for long-term, high-load, high-wear operating environments, and they are core wear-resistant materials in the high-end manufacturing sector. 2. Industrial Catalysis: Dedicated High-Efficiency Additive for Fine Chemicals Osmium and its compounds have excellent catalytic activity and serve as dedicated catalysts in certain fine chemical and organic synthesis reactions. Especially in special chemical processes such as hydrogenation and oxidation reactions, they offer high catalytic efficiency and strong reaction selectivity, effectively optimizing process flows and improving product purity and yield. Although the unit consumption of osmium catalysts is extremely low, they are rigid process necessities and are difficult to replace with other common metal catalysts, resulting in relatively strong downstream demand stability. 3. Scientific Research and Detection: Essential Specialty Consumable for Laboratories Although osmium tetroxide is toxic, it has irreplaceable value in scientific research. It is a high-quality staining agent for biological samples and microscopic material sections under electron microscopes, significantly enhancing the clarity and contrast of observed samples, and is an indispensable experimental reagent in frontier research fields such as materials science and life sciences. Meanwhile, high-purity osmium powder was also widely used in high-end scientific research experiments and the R&D of specialized new materials, serving as a niche but essential consumable for major research institutes and high-end laboratories. 4. High-End Specialized Fields: Core Components for Military and Aerospace Applications Leveraging its core advantages of high density, high-temperature resistance, and high stability, osmium was also applied in specialized high-temperature components for aerospace and military applications, precision guidance components, as well as niche scenarios such as high-end electrical contacts and wear-resistant coatings. These applications were all concentrated in cutting-edge, high-precision sectors. Although the volume of each individual application was small, the product value-added was extremely high. Moreover, with the technological iteration and development of high-end manufacturing and the military and aerospace industries, related demand had the potential for steady growth. IV. Summary of the Core Characteristics of the Osmium Metal Market Overall, as a rare category among platinum group metals, osmium had highly distinctive core characteristics: extreme scarcity on the resource side, highly monopolized supply with insufficient elasticity; application-side concentration in high-precision, cutting-edge fields, with rigid and irreplaceable demand; and unique physicochemical properties, combining both advantages and application barriers. Unlike the market-driven fluctuation logic of conventional bulk commodities, the osmium market was significantly affected by factors such as supply-side changes, downstream demand from high-end industries, and compliance costs. The overall market size was small, and trading frequency was relatively low, placing it in the category of niche rare precious metals. Its core value always revolved around the two key points of “scarcity” and “irreplaceability,” making it an indispensable key metal material in high-end industrial and scientific research fields.

Li-ION BATTERY China 2025 Officially Announced and Scheduled

The SMM Lithium Battery Raw Materials Conference 2025 will be held in Xiamen on October 20-21, 2025, focusing on the critical challenges and opportunities in the supply chain of key battery raw materials such as nickel, cobalt, and lithium amid the global energy transition. The conference aims to analyze international policy shifts, supply-demand dynamics, and pricing mechanisms from multiple perspectives, fostering a more stable, transparent, and efficient industry chain. Key Topics Include: 1.Global Market Trends: Examining the impact of geopolitics, trade policies, and supply-demand imbalances on nickel, cobalt, and lithium pricing and supply chains. 2.SMM Pricing System: Interpreting the authoritative price formation mechanism and providing future trend forecasts. 3.Industry Chain Collaboration: Facilitating long-term contract negotiations and one-on-one business matchmaking to enhance upstream-downstream cooperation. 4.Technological Innovation: Exploring cutting-edge advancements in battery materials to support corporate strategic planning. Highlights: 1.Full Industry Chain Participation: Gathering global stakeholders, including resource extraction, refining, R&D, and end-use manufacturers. 2.Authoritative Market Insights: SMM will release in-depth analysis and price benchmarks for nickel, cobalt, and lithium. 3.Efficient Networking: Structured business matchmaking to promote long-term supply chain partnerships. 4.This conference will deliver forward-looking insights, empowering enterprises to navigate resource flows and market transformations while advancing the sustainable development of the global new energy industry chain.

At the 2025 Indonesia Mining Conference & Critical Metals Conference - Tin Session , Chen Peng, Senior Tin Analyst at SMM, discussed the theme of changes in the global tin industry chain landscape and future development trends. 1. Global Tin Resource Distribution and Supply Landscape Intensified Resource Scarcity: Static Mining Lifespan Less Than 15 Years China accounts for 22% of global tin ore reserves but contributes 45% of global production, with resource development intensity exceeding critical thresholds. • Global tin resources are highly concentrated, with China, Indonesia, and Myanmar collectively accounting for over 50%. China, as the largest producer (45% of production), and Indonesia form a dual-core driving force, yet with significant differences in resource endowments. Tin Ore Segment: Global tin ore production is also primarily concentrated in countries with high reserves • Global tin ore production is mainly concentrated in countries such as China, Indonesia, Myanmar, and the DRC. • Except during the COVID-19 pandemic period, global tin ore production has consistently remained at the level of 300,000 mt in metal content annually. Tin Ore Segment: Tin ore imports continued to decline in 2025, with cumulative YoY imports for January-April 2025 at -47.98%. The contraction of tin ore supply from Myanmar has become a long-term trend. • The market generally expects that Wa State may resume production by mid-2025, but the initial increase will not exceed 10,000 mt in metal content, and it will require a 2-3 month transmission period. The progress of production resumption will be constrained by Sino-Myanmar mining trade negotiations and the centralization process in Wa State. Tin Ore Segment: Myanmar's Dominance Weakens, Diversified Landscape Accelerates • Before 2023: Myanmar once accounted for 72%-85% of China's tin ore imports. However, after the implementation of the mining ban policy in Wa State in August 2023, its supply volume plummeted. By 2024, Myanmar's import share dropped to 48.1%, and further declined to 24%-30% in 2025. The core mining area, Mansang (accounting for 80% of Myanmar's supply), remains in a state of suspension. • Emergence of Alternative Sources: Imports from Africa (DRC, Nigeria), South America (Peru, Bolivia), and Australia have increased significantly. For example, in 2025, the import share from the DRC rose to 28%, Nigeria's import share reached 11%, and Australia's imports surged by 101% YoY. The 20-day moving average of recent tin ore import profit margins has remained stable. ►Risk Point Reminder: African Supply Chain Stability to Be Verified: Operational risks at Alphamin mine in the DRC (short-term suspension in April 2025). Global Refined Tin Landscape Features "Asia-Dominated, South America-Supported, Africa-Supplemented" • In the global tin industry chain, most smelting and refining activities are concentrated near tin ore production sites. Countries such as China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Peru, Thailand, the DRC, Bolivia, and Brazil all have smelters of a certain scale, with China and Indonesia accounting for a relatively high proportion. The production resumption process in the Wa region of Myanmar has commenced, but due to the impact of earthquakes and rising policy implementation costs, the actual increase may fall short of expectations. The core contradiction in the tin ore event chain in the DRC lies in the game between geopolitical conflicts and resource dependence. Risk Points: Stability of the African supply chain to be verified: As the largest importer, China's refined tin industry chain is significantly affected by disruptions in the DRC, while the growth in demand for AI, new energy, etc., further exacerbates the supply-demand imbalance. 2. Global Tin Consumption Structure and Demand Evolution Terminal Segment: Tin Consumption Structure • In the global tin consumption structure, tin solder accounts for 48%, tin chemicals 16%, lead-acid batteries 7%, and tin alloys 7%. • In China's tin consumption structure, tin solder accounts for 67%, tin chemicals 12%, lead-acid batteries 7%, and tinplate 6%. Terminal Segment: The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) shows a significant negative correlation with the real yield of 10-year US Treasuries. AI demand has driven the capacity utilisation rate of semiconductor companies to record highs. • In the past two years, the SOX has shown a significant negative correlation with the real yield of 10-year US Treasuries, primarily driven by liquidity expectations and valuation pressures. • In 2024, the capacity utilisation rate of the US computer and semiconductor industry remained stable at 76.53%-78.44%, close to the average over the past 10 years (76.72%). In specific segments, the semiconductor capacity utilisation rate reached 95% in Q1 2025, a record high, reflecting the supply-demand tension driven by AI demand. Terminal Segment: The cumulative YoY growth rate of PVC resin production has dropped back slightly, while key enterprises producing tinplate have operated smoothly throughout the year. • The construction of commercial housing is not an isolated process; it is usually accompanied by an increase in demand for building materials. Despite two consecutive years of decline in the sales area of commercial housing, completion demand and policy support (such as ensuring timely delivery of housing projects and infrastructure investment) have driven PVC consumption growth, with a "weak positive correlation" maintained between the two in the past two years. • In the past two years, the tinplate industry has exhibited a differentiated pattern of "shortage in the high-end segment and surplus in the low-end segment". Leading enterprises have consolidated their advantages through technological upgrades and export markets, while small and medium-sized enterprises face integration pressures. However, overall production has remained at a relatively stable level and is expected to maintain its current magnitude in the future. 3. Inventory Cycle and Supply Chain Resilience Building Inventory Link: China's tin ingot social inventory exhibits significant cyclical characteristics •From February to March 2025, inventory showed an alternating pattern of "increase-decrease", mainly due to the release of downstream restocking demand coupled with fluctuations in SHFE tin prices. •Inventory changes in tin ingots are highly correlated with prices, seasonal demand (e.g., the "September-October peak season"), and policy adjustments (e.g., production restrictions in smelting), exhibiting a cyclical pattern of "inventory buildup in H1 and destocking in H2". It also elaborated on the inventory levels within China's tin industry chain. 4. Changes in the Global Tin Industry Chain Landscape and Future Development Trends In 2024, the global tin market was characterized by "regional shortages and a slight global deficit" The tin market achieved a tight balance amid supply disruptions and demand differentiation in 2024, and is expected to shift towards a slight surplus in 2025. However, structural contradictions (uneven regional supply recovery, emerging demand growth) will dominate price fluctuations. The market should closely monitor the pace of production resumptions in Myanmar, Indonesia's exports, and the semiconductor industry's recovery, while guarding against unexpected shocks from macro policies and geopolitical risks. ►SMM Outlook •In 2024, the global tin ingot market was characterized by concurrent supply contraction and weak demand recovery. Affected by factors such as the suspension of mining operations in Myanmar's Wa region and delayed approval of Indonesia's export quotas, global tin ore production declined YoY. However, the release of unreported inventory and the supplementation of recycled tin alleviated supply pressures, leading to a slight increase in annual refined tin production to approximately 374,000 mt. On the demand side, weak recovery in the semiconductor industry and a slowdown in PV growth dragged down global consumption to around 373,000 mt, resulting in a supply-demand gap of approximately 11,000 mt. •In 2025, expectations for production resumptions in Myanmar (with potential output increases in H2) and full production at new projects in the DRC and China will drive supply growth. On the demand side, the upward trend in the semiconductor cycle, coupled with the application of AI technology and growth in NEVs, may increase global consumption to 375,000 mt. However, growth in traditional sectors (e.g., tinplate, home appliance exports) will slow down to 2.1%-3.5% due to trade frictions. The annual supply-demand gap may narrow to 5,100 mt, but geopolitical risks (Myanmar's political situation, Indonesia's exports) may exacerbate volatility. 》Click to view the special report on the 2025 Indonesia Mining Conference & Critical Metals Conference

As the lead industry continues to develop, the supply imbalance in the raw material sector is intensifying. In terms of lead concentrates, the tight supply situation is worsening. Additionally, due to the historically relatively high prices of gold and silver, smelters' demand for high-grade lead concentrates has increased. Meanwhile, the domestic processing fees for lead concentrates have continued to hit new lows. In terms of scrap, according to the SMM survey, in recent years, the generation of scrap batteries has not matched the processing capacity for scrap batteries. The capacity of secondary lead is in a state of oversupply. In 2024, the new capacity of secondary lead continued to increase, while the domestic supply of scrap was limited. Moreover, there was a loss of scrap in exports. Coupled with the traditional off-season in the lead-acid battery market in the first half of the year, with battery scrap volumes at a low point for the year, the supply imbalance has intensified. To enable industry peers to have a clearer and more intuitive understanding of the global market distribution of lead ingot raw material industries, SMM, in collaboration with Zhejiang Gang Lianjie Logistics Technology Co., Ltd., is proud to launch the "2025 Global Lead Ingot Raw Material Enterprise Resource Distribution Map". After annotation and typesetting, it will be printed and distributed to upstream and downstream customers in the industry. It aims to provide an authoritative, comprehensive, and professional overview of the lead ingot raw material industry, establish a communication bridge between enterprises across the industry chain, break down information barriers between upstream and downstream sectors, and jointly promote the healthy and green development and upgrading of the lead industry. Zhejiang Gang Lianjie Logistics Technology Co., Ltd., is an AAAA-level comprehensive service logistics enterprise affiliated with the Ningbo Zhoushan Port Group system. It is a joint venture established by Zhejiang Seaport Logistics Group and Box Technology (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. It has obtained China Quality Management System Certification, with the number: 00124Q37205ROM/3302, and is a state-controlled enterprise. Relying on the brand advantages of Ningbo Zhoushan Port, the company adheres to the principle of taking Ningbo Zhoushan Port as the main body and closely revolves around the strategic business layout of Ningbo Zhoushan Port to provide customers with modern and comprehensive logistics services. The company has opened an Anhui branch in 2023, established a Malaysian subsidiary, and will open a German subsidiary in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, by the end of 2024. Currently, the Thai company has completed its registration and is in further planning. The company can provide logistics services centered on Malaysia and Thailand, radiating to various Southeast Asian countries, including but not limited to door-to-door cargo pick-up, warehouse (warehousing and in-warehouse operations), ocean freight booking, import and export customs clearance, etc. In terms of business performance, the company has ranked first in import agency volume at Ningbo Port for two consecutive years (2023 and 2024) and first in non-ferrous metal agency volume at Ningbo Port. It has also been honored with the "Top Ten Import Freight Forwarding Enterprises" award for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024. Domestically: In terms of import business, the company provides full-chain import logistics services, covering international multimodal transport, port customs clearance, bonded customs declaration, transportation, warehousing, etc., covering almost all bulk raw materials: such as non-ferrous metals, plastic pellets, agricultural and sideline products, pulp, grain, recycled materials, hazardous goods, cold chain, bulk cargo, petroleum and petrochemical products, food, minerals, etc. Overseas: Zhejiang Gang Lianjie (Malaysia) Logistics Technology Co., Ltd. (a subsidiary), located in Selangor, Malaysia, 20 kilometers away from Port Klang West, 23 kilometers away from Port Klang North, and 34 kilometers away from the Port Klang Bonded Free Trade Zone. It is mainly engaged in international freight forwarding for imports and exports, with Malaysia as the center to radiate throughout Southeast Asia, and carries out related businesses. Contact Information Chen Dong (Imports) 13901649539 Zhu Yong, Overseas Project Leader and General Manager of the Malaysian Subsidiary 18501669898 Chen Lei (Imports) 13857876948 Shi Qihao (Imports) 13777188184 Contact Person for SMM Map Co-production Tian Cheng 19521491689 tiancheng@smm.cn

Against the backdrop of intensifying global competition in high-end manufacturing and domestic industrial structure upgrading, the titanium industry, as a vital component of the new materials sector, is ushering in a new wave of development opportunities. From titanium ore mining and beneficiation to high-end titanium product manufacturing, and from low-level, disorderly exploitation to green and innovative advancements, Yunnan Province is accelerating the layout of its titanium industry chain, leveraging its abundant titanium resources, clean energy advantages, and geographical strengths. With the vision of a "Green Titanium Valley," it has emerged as a new force in China's titanium industrial landscape. Clustered Enterprise Development An Increasingly Refined Industry Chain At the LB Group's Yunnan base in Qingfeng Town, Lufeng City, Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture (hereinafter referred to as "Chuxiong Prefecture"), the 3,500-acre facility is meticulously arranged. In the packaging workshop of LB Lufeng Titanium Co., Ltd., chlorination-process titanium dioxide is fully automated and isolated during bagging, with rows of conveyor belts neatly stacking the packaged titanium dioxide. Daily, 380 mt of titanium dioxide is shipped from here. Over the past four years, driven by technological upgrades and innovation, the operational stability of the company's chlorination-process titanium dioxide production line has significantly improved, with both production and output value steadily increasing for four consecutive years. Production rose from 40,000 mt in 2020 to 121,000 mt in 2024, while output value grew from 1 billion yuan in 2020 to 2.44 billion yuan in 2024. Titanium is hailed as the "third metal" following iron and aluminum, rapidly rising in prominence, and is also celebrated as the space metal, ocean metal, bio-metal, and future metal. The global titanium industry has only an 80-year history, and due to the complexity of titanium metallurgy, only a few countries—such as the US, Russia, Japan, and China—have established comprehensive titanium industrial research and application systems. Yunnan Province boasts unique titanium resources with exceptionally favorable mining conditions. By 2020, 66 titanium ore deposits had been discovered in the province, with proven reserves of 55.61 million mt, ranking third nationally. These resources are primarily distributed in central, southern, and western Yunnan. Among them, the central Yunnan mining area, located at the intersection of southern Yunnan, western Yunnan, and the Panzhihua mining area in Sichuan, serves as the central hub of titanium resource distribution in south-west China. This region is densely surrounded by titanium industries, having developed and formed the Fumin titanium salt industrial base, represented by sulfate-process titanium dioxide; the Lufeng titanium industrial base, characterized by chlorination-process titanium dioxide, sponge titanium, and titanium processing; and the Wuding titanium industrial base, known for its production of high-titanium slag and other titanium-rich materials. In 2021, the green titanium industrial cluster jointly developed by Lufeng City and Wuding County received provincial recognition and support as a cultivation-type advanced manufacturing cluster. Recently, it was also included in the development scope of the central Yunnan rare and precious metals new materials industrial cluster, earning national-level recognition as an advanced manufacturing cluster. Benefiting from its superior transportation, geographical location, and solid industrial foundation, the titanium industry in Chuxiong Prefecture has flourished. Currently, Chuxiong Prefecture has gathered over 30 titanium industry enterprises, forming a complete industry chain from titanium ore mining and beneficiation to the production of high-titanium slag, chloride-process titanium dioxide, titanium sponge, and titanium materials. It has become the only region in China and even globally with a complete titanium industry chain. In Lufeng City, the titanium industry has clustered, forming a collective development trend. In May 2019, Yunnan Metallurgical Xinli Titanium Industry Co., Ltd., which was on the verge of bankruptcy, was acquired by Lomon Billions Group. After restructuring, it received support from LB Group Co., Ltd. in various aspects such as talent cultivation, technological transformation, and technological innovation. "In 2023, the company's 200,000 mt chloride-process titanium dioxide project was completed and put into operation, and it has now become a leading enterprise in the titanium dioxide industry in Yunnan Province," Liu Hongxing, Chairman of LB Lufeng Titanium Industry Co., Ltd., told the author. Yunnan Guotai Metal Co., Ltd., also a subsidiary of LB Group, is mainly engaged in the production, R&D, and sales of titanium sponge. It has initially established a full-process industry chain of "titanium ore - titanium concentrate - high-titanium slag - titanium tetrachloride - electrolytic magnesium - titanium sponge," with an existing annual production capacity of 80,000 mt of high-titanium slag and 50,000 mt of titanium sponge, ranking first in the world in terms of titanium sponge production capacity. In 2024, the company's 30,000 mt/year rotor-grade titanium sponge production project reached full production, with an annual production capacity of 50,000 mt. Yunnan Titanium Industry Co., Ltd., located in Tuguan Town, Lufeng City, mainly produces titanium and titanium alloy casting ingots, titanium coils, titanium rod wires, and titanium wide and thick plates. In 2024, the company's production and sales volumes were both around 3,000 mt. Liu Kun, Deputy General Manager of the company, stated that with the continuous and rapid development of the titanium industry chain's process technology, the production and sales volumes of titanium products produced by the enterprise have steadily increased, and their application fields are rapidly expanding. The excellent metallic properties of titanium provide indispensable support for key fields such as aerospace, marine vessels, metallurgical and chemical engineering, medical devices, sports and leisure, and civilian products. The company focuses on the R&D of new titanium and titanium alloy products and the extended processing of titanium materials, actively applying its unique advantages to more fields. As of 2023, there were over 150 enterprises in Yunnan Province's titanium industry, with nearly 50 key producers. The total industrial output value of the titanium industry amounted to 11 billion yuan, of which 8.86 billion yuan was in Chuxiong Prefecture and 2.14 billion yuan was in Kunming. Enhancement of Innovation Capabilities Continuous Growth in Development Potential The preciousness of titanium mainly lies in its complex smelting process and high processing costs. Yunnan Province's titanium industry started relatively early, but due to limitations in talent, technology, capital, and institutional mechanisms, its development was relatively slow, and it remained in a state of low-level and disorderly development for a long time before the "13th Five-Year Plan" period. Seizing the opportunity presented by the green energy advantages under the "dual carbon" goals and the emergence of new growth points in titanium material applications, the Yunnan Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government have attached great importance to the cultivation of the new materials industry, taking multiple measures to promote the transformation and upgrading of the titanium industry. A group of leading enterprises are driving the rebirth of the "Titanium Valley" in central Yunnan, aiming to expand, strengthen, and optimize the titanium industry. Under the leadership of LB Group, LB Lufeng Titanium Industry Co., Ltd. has carried out a series of technological transformations and innovations: innovating the feeding system to address issues of feeding stability and precise measurement; optimizing the refined control of the cyclone system to solve the long-standing problem of cyclone blockages that affected the continuous and stable operation of the system within the industry; and improving the process control parameters of the oxidation reaction to stabilize the quality of titanium dioxide base materials. Alongside the technological transformations for production resumption, the company has delved deep into the coupled mode of two chlorination processes, addressing not only the environmental protection issues related to wastewater treatment in titanium dioxide production but also significantly reducing the alkali consumption for treating the off-gas from the chlorination of titanium sponge in molten salt, saving over 10 million yuan annually and achieving a "1+1>2" complementary advantage between the two processes. At the LB Yunnan base, a centralized digital control system has integrated the scattered control systems from various workshops into a control building, enabling "interlocked" remote control and setting reasonable parameter values and operating procedures, allowing employees to easily control production. According to a relevant official from the Yunnan Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, as of 2023, there are over 20 innovative enterprises in the central Yunnan titanium industry, including 7 technology-based small and medium-sized enterprises, 5 high-tech enterprises, 2 provincial-level and above specialized and sophisticated "little giant" enterprises, and 1 national-level technological innovation demonstration enterprise. The number of effective invention patents per 100 million yuan of main business income for industrial enterprises above designated size has reached 1.27, 65% higher than the national average. Industry insiders have stated that Yunnan's titanium industry fully leverages its advantageous conditions, including resource advantages, complete industry chain advantages, industry-university-research collaboration advantages, and geographical advantages. Through rational layout and emphasis on key areas, it has formed a titanium industry cluster with upstream-downstream integration and industry-university-research collaboration, accelerating the R&D, production, and application promotion of titanium materials in fields such as aerospace, marine vessels, metallurgical and chemical engineering, military equipment, and civilian products, aiming to achieve rapid and comprehensive development of Yunnan's titanium industry. To address the shortage of high-end technical talents, in 2024, the Lufeng Municipal Government, in collaboration with Kunming University of Science and Technology, will jointly establish a Modern Industry College for Green Titanium and a Titanium Industry Research Institute, providing strong technical support for talent cultivation, industry-education integration, integration of science and education, industry-university-research collaborative innovation, and industrial technology breakthroughs in the regional titanium industry. According to relevant personnel from the Chuxiong Prefecture Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, in 2025, Chuxiong Prefecture will promote the "green electricity + advanced manufacturing" model across the entire industrial chain, fostering advantageous industrial clusters such as green titanium. Focusing on the entire chain of "resources - smelting - intensive and deep processing," it will accelerate the construction of seven projects aimed at complementing, extending, and strengthening the titanium industry chain, including the boiling chlorination raw material project, the Zhongzhou Carbon Materials project, and the Dongkai Vanadium-Scandium Resources Comprehensive Utilisation project. Additionally, centering on the intensive and deep processing of 80,000 mt of titanium sponge by LB Group and Guotai Metal Company, it will expedite the cooperation between Yunnan Titanium Industry Co., Ltd. and Yunnan Precious Metals Group to develop high-end titanium alloys and composite materials, thereby expanding enterprise products into fields such as aerospace, military industry, medical treatment, electricity, chemicals, and water treatment.