On June 24, Cangzhou Mingzhu Plastic Co., Ltd. announced that its lithium-ion battery separator production expansion project has been fully completed. This commissioning involves the remaining production lines of the "annual 200 million square meter wet-process lithium-ion battery separator project" and the "annual 500 million square meter dry-process lithium-ion battery separator project." According to the announcement, the second production line (with an annual design capacity of 100 million square meters) under the wet-process project, which is being handled by the subsidiary Wuhu Mingzhu Separator Technology Co., Ltd., has recently commenced production. Concurrently, the remaining three production lines (with a combined annual design capacity of 300 million square meters) under the dry-process project, being handled by the subsidiary Cangzhou Mingzhu Lithium Battery Separator Co., Ltd., have also been completed and put into operation.

On June 24, the first public notice for the environmental impact assessment of the annual 1,000-ton silicon-carbon anode material construction project of Jiangxi Naer Lithium Battery Materials Co., Ltd. was released. The project uses porous carbon, silane, and other materials as raw materials, and will procure production equipment such as CVD nano-silicon deposition systems, interfacial coating and cracking systems, crushers, and supporting environmental protection facilities. Upon completion, the project will achieve an annual production capacity of 1,000 tons of silicon-carbon anode materials. The project is under the construction responsibility of Jiangxi Naer Lithium Battery Materials Co., Ltd., with the environmental impact assessment conducted by Jiangxi Shengjia Technology Consulting Services Co., Ltd.

SMM, June 25: Metal markets: As of the noon close, base metals on the domestic market fell across the board, with SHFE copper down 1.82%, SHFE aluminum down 2.75%, SHFE lead down 0.7%, SHFE zinc down 1.64%, SHFE nickel down 0.92%, and SHFE tin down 1.76%. Additionally, the most-traded cast aluminum futures fell 2.08%, the most-traded alumina contract fell 1.29%, the most-traded lithium carbonate contract fell 1.75%, the most-traded silicon metal contract fell 0.29%, and the most-traded polysilicon futures rose 0.33%. Ferrous metals mostly rose, with only stainless steel down 0.75%. Iron ore rose 0.2%, rebar rose 0.1%, and hot-rolled coil edged up. In the coking coal and coke segment: the most-traded coking coal contract inched up 0.08%, and the most-traded coke contract rose 0.28%. In overseas base metals, as of 11:38, LME metals rose across the board. LME copper rose 0.82%, LME aluminum rose 0.24%, LME lead rose 0.6%, LME zinc rose 0.31%, LME tin rose 2.02%, and LME nickel rose 0.77%. In precious metals, as of 11:38, COMEX gold fell 0.48%, and COMEX silver fell 2.02%. In domestic precious metals: SHFE gold declined 2.81%, hitting an intraday low of 868.34 yuan/g; the most-traded SHFE silver contract fell 7.1%, with an intraday low of 13,560 yuan/kg. Additionally, as of the noon close, the most-traded platinum futures fell 4.39%, and the most-traded palladium futures fell 3.54%. As of the noon close, the most-traded containerized freight index (Europe) futures fell 2.45% to 3,665.5 points. As of 11:38 on June 25, midday quotes for selected futures: Spot and fundamentals Silver: In the spot market, downstream consumption recovered somewhat after silver continued to decline. Morning quotes in Shanghai were mainly at TD parity to +20 yuan/kg... Macro front Domestic front: [China's power generation capacity exceeds 4 billion kW] On June 25, the National Energy Administration announced that as of the end of May 2026, China's power generation capacity reached 4.01 billion kW, ranking first globally. Non-fossil energy capacity became the absolute mainstay of capacity additions, and the energy mix continued to improve. The share of coal-fired power capacity fell from 61% in 2010 to 32% in May 2026; the share of non-fossil energy capacity rose from 25% in 2010 to 62% in May 2026; and the share of renewable energy capacity rose from 24% in 2010 to 61% in May 2026. (Xinhua) [PBOC reverse repo net injection of 322.5 billion yuan today] The PBOC conducted 370.5 billion yuan of 7-day reverse repos and 500 billion yuan of 1-year medium-term lending facility (MLF) operations today. With 300 billion yuan of 1-year MLF and 248 billion yuan of 7-day reverse repos maturing today, this resulted in a net injection of 322.5 billion yuan. ((Jin10 Data APP) US dollar: As of 11:38, the US dollar index fell 0.07% to 101.51. All large US banks passed the Fed's annual stress test, paving the way for banks to boost share buybacks and dividends by tens of billions of dollars. The stress test aims to assess how Wall Street lenders would fare under hypothetical financial system shocks. Unlike in previous years, the 2026 test results will not affect capital requirements, as the Fed is continuously revising the test to make it more friendly to banks. This year's test examined how 32 large lenders would withstand a severe global shock amid greater stress in commercial and residential real estate markets and corporate debt markets. The hypothetical scenario included a severe global recession, a 39% drop in commercial real estate prices, and a 30% decline in residential prices. The unemployment rate also surged to a peak of 10%, with a corresponding decline in economic output. The regulators said, "Despite absorbing over $708 billion in loan losses under this year's hypothetical scenario, total capital fell by just 1.6 percentage points, still above the minimum capital requirement." According to CME FedWatch, the probability that the Fed keeps rates unchanged in July is 65.8%, while the chance of a cumulative 25bp rate hike is 34.2%. By September, the probability of rates remaining unchanged is 33.6%, of a cumulative 25bp hike is 49.7%, and of a cumulative 50bp hike is 16.7%. US Treasury Secretary Bessent praised Fed Chairman Warsh for eliminating forward guidance, and said no one should make dot plot forecasts. On the economy, he expects real wage growth to return to the pace seen before April and expects the economy to accelerate for the rest of the year without fueling inflation. He stressed that the dominance of the US dollar is crucial. He believes that once the situation in Ukraine is over, Russia will want to return to the dollar system, while a new Venezuela is returning to that system. During a period of rate cuts, the dollar can still remain strong, and the US is willing to take the right measures to keep the dollar strong. (Jin10 Data APP) On the data front: Today will see the release of Australia's May seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, Germany's July GfK Consumer Confidence Index, US initial jobless claims for the week ending June 20, US May core PCE price index year-on-year, US May personal spending month-on-month, the final reading of US Q1 real GDP annualized quarter-on-quarter, the final reading of US Q1 real personal consumption expenditures quarter-on-quarter, the final reading of US Q1 core PCE price index annualized quarter-on-quarter, US May core PCE price index month-on-month, US May durable goods orders month-on-month, and other data. Additionally, attention should be paid to: Nvidia's annual shareholder meeting; the Bank of Canada's release of monetary policy meeting minutes; the US Federal Reserve's release of annual bank stress test results; Bank of Japan Governor Ueda Kazuo's attendance at a central bank lecture event hosted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF); Micron Technology's fiscal 2026 Q3 earnings call; and 300 billion yuan in 1-year medium-term lending facility (MLF) and 248 billion yuan in 7-day reverse repos maturing today. Crude oil: As of 11:38, oil prices on both exchanges continued to decline, extending losses from the previous three trading days, with WTI falling 1.69% and Brent falling 1.53%. Oil prices pulled back their wartime gains on Thursday as the market bet on improving global crude supply, with tankers that had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for months beginning to sail out of the Strait of Hormuz. According to data from maritime analytics firm Kpler, more than 20 tankers carrying approximately 35 million barrels of crude oil have passed through the Strait of Hormuz since a US-Iran agreement reopened this critical shipping lane. These non-Iranian tankers had been stuck in the Persian Gulf for over three months after Tehran effectively blockaded the waterway early in the conflict. Most of these tankers are expected to arrive at Asian destinations by early August. Citigroup stated that the worst may be over for commodity futures carry trade strategies, which suffered massive losses during the US-Iran war as short positions in near-month contracts were hit hard by soaring prices, while long positions in forward contracts were bought. Citi noted that the current base case is for significant de-escalation, and predicts that as Strait of Hormuz shipping normalizes, Brent crude prices will fall to $60-$65 per barrel over the next 6 to 12 months. (Jin10 Data APP) Spot market overview: ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ►

Jichong Hydrogen recently made new progress in the manufacturing process of fuel cell metal plate stacks. The company's independently developed single-cell integrated manufacturing process has been successfully completed, providing new process support for the advancement of large-power fuel cell stacks towards high performance, high reliability, and low-cost mass production. The fuel cell stack is a core component of the hydrogen fuel cell system. Its manufacturing precision, sealing reliability, and single cell consistency directly affect the operational efficiency and service life of vehicles or equipment. At present, most metal plate stacks in China still adopt the traditional structure route of "bipolar plate + membrane electrode assembly," which often leads to problems such as bipolar plate warpage, insufficient stack stacking accuracy, and low assembly efficiency during production. These process difficulties not only affect the sealing performance of the stack but may also lead to a decrease in single cell consistency, thereby increasing subsequent testing, maintenance, and manufacturing costs. For the fuel cell industry that is moving towards large-scale application, how to improve stack manufacturing efficiency and reduce batch production costs has become a key aspect of enterprise competition. Focusing on industry pain points, Jichong Hydrogen, leveraging years of accumulation in the research and development and mass production of large-power metal bipolar plate stacks, has independently developed the single-cell integrated manufacturing process for metal plate stacks. This process restructures the stack assembly method from the manufacturing source, helping to reduce structural defects in traditional assembly processes and improve the stability of subsequent stacking and mass production. According to reports, the relevant process has currently completed reliability verification such as high-low temperature cycles, damp heat cycles, high-low voltage tolerance, and special medium immersion , demonstrating that it has a basis for further industrial application under complex operating conditions. The development of the new process is expected to enhance the reliability and consistency of stack products and reduce production and later operation and maintenance costs. From the perspective of industrialisation, the significance of the integrated single-cell process lies not only in a single technological breakthrough but also in providing a more efficient manufacturing pathway for the large-scale production of large-power fuel cell stacks. As application scenarios such as hydrogen heavy-duty trucks, construction machinery, ships, and stationary power generation accelerate expansion, the demand for high-power, high-durability, and low-cost stacks will continue to grow. The completion of this process development by Jichong Hydrogen will further solidify its manufacturing capabilities in the field of fuel cell metal plate stacks. In the future, as the process undergoes continuous verification and optimisation in mass production stages, the enterprise is expected to form stronger support for the localisation of core fuel cell components, cost reduction and efficiency improvement, and market promotion.

Recently, the north-east China City Football League Harbin division kicked off at the Acheng District Culture and Sports Center in Harbin. As the event's official strategic partner, Geely combined methanol energy, sports events, and north-east China's regional characteristics, showcasing its green commercial vehicle products in event scenarios. Following the appearance of the Farizon Xinghan H methanol-electric heavy-duty truck at the Shenyang division, the Farizon Xingzhi T9M methanol-electric light truck debuted in Harbin as the official ceremonial float. The addition of this model signifies that Geely Farizon has achieved product synergy from heavy-duty to light-duty trucks in event support scenarios, further demonstrating the multi-category layout of its methanol-electric commercial vehicles in the north-east China market. The north-east China Super League is the country's first inter-provincial mass football tournament, covering eight cities including Shenyang, Dalian, Changchun, and Harbin. Using football as a link, the event showcases the vitality of coordinated regional development in north-east China. Geely provides support in event operations, brand promotion, and support services, and through methanol-electric products, showcases green transportation solutions, conveying a healthy, safe, and environmentally friendly travel and transportation philosophy . The Farizon Xingzhi T9M has moved from behind-the-scenes support to the forefront, becoming a vital vehicle for showcasing methanol-electric technology to the public. Previously, Geely Farizon's products have served large-scale events such as the Hangzhou Asian Games and the Harbin Asian Winter Games, covering scenarios including public mobility, urban logistics, and torch relay, while completing support tasks in low-temperature environments, verifying the adaptability of methanol-electric technology in cold regions. With cold winters, vast geographic spans, and strong logistics transportation demand, north-east China places higher requirements on the driving range, energy replenishment, and low-temperature starting capabilities of new energy commercial vehicles. Traditional battery-electric routes are prone to issues such as driving range degradation and reduced energy replenishment efficiency in extremely cold environments, whereas methanol-electric technology, by combining fuel-based energy replenishment with an electric drive system, offers an alternative new energy commercial vehicle solution for north China. Leveraging Geely's over 20 years of technological accumulation in methanol, Geely Farizon has formed a methanol-electric product matrix covering categories such as heavy-duty trucks, light-duty trucks, buses, and agricultural machinery, adaptable to various scenarios including trunk logistics, urban distribution, short-haul transport, engineering operations, public transport, and agricultural production. Considering the energy and transport characteristics of north China, "Methanol in the North, Electricity in the South" is emerging as a key pathway for Geely Farizon to promote the development of regional new energy commercial vehicles . In terms of operational performance, the methanol-electric light truck can cover intercity trunk routes exceeding 900 km from Harbin to Dalian, start rapidly in -20°C low-temperature environments, and achieve per-kilometer costs as low as 0.5 yuan, representing a reduction of over 50% compared to equivalent diesel light trucks. Methanol-electric buses have been deployed in Tianjin, Daqing, Harbin, Shenyang, and other cities, offering a driving range of up to 600 km, maintaining a constant cabin temperature of 20°C to 25°C in winter, and saving 180,000 yuan over an 8-year vehicle life cycle. In the heavy-duty truck sector, the Farizon Xinghan H methanol-electric heavy-duty truck, fully loaded at 42 mt, traveled 1,522.9 km on a single tank of methanol traversing the Hexi Corridor, earning a world record certification. In May this year, a driverless tractor equipped with a methanol-electric agricultural machinery power solution commenced spring plowing applications in Shuangyashan, Heilongjiang, providing green power support for agricultural production. Regarding the energy replenishment system, Geely Farizon has cooperated with enterprises including PetroChina and Sinopec to build over 1,000 methanol refueling stations nationwide and plans to expand this to 4,000 by the end of 2027, enhancing the convenience of methanol vehicle usage. At the policy level, the green hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol industry is being integrated as a key development direction, and multiple regions have successively introduced policy documents supporting the promotion of methanol vehicles. Liaoning Province has proposed reaching a methanol vehicle production scale of over 50,000 units by 2028, while Heilongjiang Province is also advancing the construction of a methanol ecosystem. From sports event showcases to road transport, public transit, and agricultural production, Geely Farizon's methanol-electric technology is achieving multi-scenario implementation in north-east China. Going forward, as models such as the Xingzhi T9M accelerate their promotion, methanol-electric commercial vehicles are expected to further serve the new energy transition of commercial vehicles, energy structure optimization, and green transportation system development in north-east China.

In June 2026, the hydrogen energy transportation equipment sector in the Xixian New Area saw new progress. A Skyworth-brand hydrogen fuel cell low-floor city bus, with its hydrogen core power system independently developed by resident enterprise Shengshi Yingchuang Hydrogen Energy Technology (Shaanxi) Co., Ltd. and equipped with its hydrogen fuel cell system, recently rolled off the production line. This model has been included in the 389th batch of the "Announcement of Road Motor Vehicle Manufacturers and Their Products" by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, laying a foundation for commercial operation. With the roll-off, Xixian New Area has added new support for the demonstration application of hydrogen fuel cell buses and the green transformation of urban transportation. It is understood that the hydrogen core power system of this city bus was entirely led and developed by Shengshi Yingchuang. The vehicle is equipped with the company's independently developed 90 kW hydrogen fuel cell system , and a Type IV high-end on-board hydrogen supply system jointly created with Beijing Tianhai. Compared with traditional battery electric buses, hydrogen fuel cell buses offer differentiated advantages in refueling efficiency, low-temperature adaptability, and long driving range operation, making them more suitable for the high-frequency, long-duration operational demands of bus routes. A relevant person in charge of Shengshi Yingchuang stated that the vehicle's power system features independent controllability, strong adaptability, and stable operation, which can improve vehicle operational efficiency while ensuring safety. The vehicle's combined driving range reaches 550 km , and with its fast hydrogen refueling capability, it can alleviate issues such as driving range decay and long refueling times that battery electric buses face in low winter temperatures, offering strong adaptability to the climatic conditions of north-west China and urban public transportation scenarios. Hydrogen energy is regarded as an important direction for green and low-carbon transition. The "Medium and Long-Term Plan for the Development of the Hydrogen Energy Industry (2021–2035)" issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration proposes to orderly promote demonstration applications in the transportation sector, focus on promoting the application of medium and heavy-duty hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, and gradually form a complementary development pattern of fuel cell electric vehicles and lithium battery electric vehicles. In the Xixian New Area, the hydrogen energy industry chain is accelerating its agglomeration. At present, the new area has attracted over a hundred hydrogen energy upstream and downstream enterprises such as Xushun Times and Shengshi Yingchuang, covering fields including PV electrolysis hydrogen production, liquid and solid-state hydrogen storage, fuel cell manufacturing, hydrogen refueling station construction, and the R&D and production of hydrogen commercial vehicles. The number of related enterprises has accounted for more than one-third of the total number of hydrogen energy enterprises in Shaanxi Province and nearly 70% of similar enterprises in Xi'an, preliminarily forming an **integrated industry ecosystem of "R&D breakthroughs, equipment manufacturing, and demonstration applications."** Going forward, Xixian New Area will continue to expand the integrated application of hydrogen energy in transportation, energy, industry, and other fields, deepen industry-university-research collaborative innovation, improve industrial supporting facilities and enterprise service systems, and attract more high-growth enterprises for cluster development. As demonstration scenarios continue to expand, the hydrogen energy industry is expected to become a significant growth point for the new area's green and low-carbon transition and high-quality development.

I.AI Computing Power Expansion Opens Growth Space for Copper Global computing power infrastructure and data center construction have seen simultaneous explosive growth, with intensive commissioning of intelligent computing and supercomputing projects across regions, generating an entirely new incremental demand curve for copper semis. According to SMM projections, global new installations is expected to achieve a CAGR of 24% from 2025 to 2030, with the fastest pace of new deployment occurring in 2025 and 2026. New installations in 2026 are expected to grow 65% MoM, and by 2027, the growth rate of new installations is projected to pull back to 28.77%, followed by a year-by-year deceleration in 2028-2030. By region, global new installations of computing power are mainly concentrated in two major markets: the US and China. Leveraging its scale-leading cloud operators, highly efficient facility operation systems, and a well-established global AI industry ecosystem, the US continues to lead in deployment scale. In China, leading cloud producers such as Alibaba and Tencent continue to increase capital expenditure on computing power infrastructure, while the national computing power network is formally incorporated into the top-level planning of the "Six Networks" and the "East Data, West Computing" projects are being rolled out and commissioned in batches, leading to a steady rise in the market share of domestic intelligent computing centers. SMM analysis indicates that the CAGR of new copper consumption for global computing power from 2025 to 2030 is 21%, slightly lower than the growth rate of new installations. The core reason is the gradual release of medium and long-term technological effects that reduce copper usage. Looking at individual years, copper consumption growth is 54.94% in 2026, pulling back to 27.58% in 2027, and the growth of new copper consumption is also expected to exhibit a gradual slowdown trend from 2028 to 2030. II. Unit Copper Consumption in Computing Power Centers Shows a Phased Trend of First Increasing then Decreasing SMM's calculation by region shows that the comprehensive copper consumption per unit of global computing power centers will present a characteristic of first increasing then decreasing from 2025 to 2030. In the short term, new computing power is mainly through the construction of entirely new campuses, with supporting power, grounding, and other infrastructure built from scratch, coupled with high-density cabinets driving a rapid rise in the penetration rate of liquid cooling systems. Multiple factors jointly push comprehensive unit consumption upwards in 2025-2026. In the medium and long term, as 800V high-voltage DC power distribution is popularized at scale, the required thickness and cross-section of copper conductors under equivalent power scenarios will decrease significantly.Meanwhile, high-speed NVLink copper cables will face substitution by fiber optic interconnects. Coupled with the iteration of liquid cooling heat dissipation materials and technological breakthroughs in aluminum as a substitute for copper processes, the industry's comprehensive unit consumption will enter a downward trajectory. However, constrained by the pace of industrial technology penetration, SMM's calculations show no significant decline in unit consumption in 2027-2028, as consumption reduction and copper-increase factors offset each other, keeping unit consumption stable. The downward trend will only become significantly prominent after 2029. It is worth noting that comprehensive unit consumption is a weighted average calculated by SMM based on the deployment scale of computing power in the US, China, and the rest of the world. There is clear differentiation in unit consumption among data centers in different regions, with the unit copper consumption ranked as: Rest of the World > China > US, where the scale effect of large clusters effectively lowers unit copper intensity. III. Breakdown of Core Copper Usage in Computing Power Centers Computing centers fall into three categories: general-purpose IDCs, intelligent computing centers, and supercomputing centers. This article uses intelligent computing centers, which currently hold the highest market share and fastest growth rate, as the calculation sample to break down the copper consumption structure: The power supply and distribution system is the largest copper-consuming segment in a computing center, accounting for 66% of total copper consumption according to SMM calculations. It primarily handles medium- and high-voltage power conversion and ensures uninterrupted power supply for equipment rooms. Medium- and low-voltage distribution cabinets, UPS, and busways are the core copper-consuming equipment. In the short term, high-power cabinets continue to boost demand for copper semis in power distribution, while in the medium and long term, after the popularization of lithium battery UPS and high-voltage DC solutions, unit copper consumption in the distribution segment will trend steadily downward. SMM estimates that AI server hardware infrastructure accounts for 18% of copper consumption, undertaking all tasks of computing power, storage, and network interaction. It integrates core components such as GPUs, motherboards, and server power supplies, and the stable operation of the hardware directly determines the computing power output of the cluster. High-end AI server PCBs and internal interconnection copper wires are the main sources of copper consumption in this segment. The liquid cooling system accounts for 11% of copper consumption. The closed-loop liquid cooling cycle meets the heat dissipation demands of high-power AI chips, with cold plates, CDU heat exchange units, and circulating copper pipe & tube serving as the main copper-consuming components. Liquid cooling penetration during 2025-2026 will boost demand for copper pipe & tube and copper plate/sheet and strip, and once copper-aluminum composite heat dissipation materials mature, the copper intensity for heat dissipation will gradually decline. Network communication, grounding protection, and supporting auxiliary systems together occupy the remaining 5% of copper consumption , covering sub-scenarios such as high-speed interconnection cabling and equipment room grounding and lightning protection copper grids. The current optical fiber interconnection industry chain continues to expand production, with optical fiber enterprises seeing simultaneous improvements in orders and profitability, indirectly confirming the overall high prosperity of AI computing power construction. In the long term, optical fiber will also continue to divert demand from high-speed copper cables. IV. Comprehensive Analysis of the Proportions of Different Copper Semis Breaking down the copper consumption structure of computing centers comprehensively by semi-finished copper product category, cables and copper busbars are the core consumables throughout the construction process. SMM analysis shows that cables account for 40% of the total copper consumption in a computing center, acting as the “blood vessels” permeating every link, with core applications in high-voltage access, low-voltage distribution, power transmission, high-speed communication copper cables, building wiring, as well as grounding and lightning protection cables. Copper busbar (24% of total copper consumption), the "backbone" for high-current power distribution in data centers, is mainly used in high- and low-voltage power distribution cabinets, transformer copper busbars, UPS systems, etc.Copper plate/sheet and strip (17%) is mostly used in transformer windings and liquid cooling cold plate substrates, performing dual functions of power transformation and heat dissipation. Copper pipe & tube (11% of total copper consumption) is a dedicated consumable for liquid cooling systems, mostly used in circulation piping, CDU heat exchange units, and precision air conditioning heat exchange pipes. The large-scale expansion of liquid cooling will boost demand for copper pipe & tube in the short term. Copper foil (4%) covers application scenarios including servers, switches, and various PCB circuit boards. Industry demand is concentrated on HVLP ultra-low profile high-end copper foil. Although the copper consumption per GW is relatively small, the incremental elasticity driven by AI computing power expansion is extremely strong. Currently, copper foil enterprises are accelerating the switch of capacity from ordinary electronic copper foil to high-end HVLP capacity, while copper clad laminate (CCL) producers have full order books and processing fees are being raised continuously, indicating that the prosperity of computing hardware demand has been verified across the entire industry chain. In summary, the rapid expansion of computing centers directly drives the growth in demand for related copper semis. At the same time, high-density AI computing clusters significantly raise the requirements for power supply supporting facilities, and the overall electricity consumption scale of the industry surges simultaneously. The demand for power infrastructure construction derived from computing expansion has become a key focus for long-term tracking and research in the future. While computing demand expands, the industry's development also faces external constraints. Currently, the grid connection approval process has a relatively long queuing period, and the market is generally concerned that transmission, distribution, and generation-side capacity bottlenecks may drag down the implementation pace of computing projects. However, according to SMM forecasts, no substantial power supply gap risk is expected for the industry over the next five years. It will still be necessary to closely track the approval progress and commissioning pace of various transmission and distribution supporting projects. SMM will also continue to follow the relevant industry dynamics and copper demand changes. For detailed data, please contact Cynthia Wang of the SMM Copper Research Team at 15762822325.

SMM, June 24: Based on the profound accumulation in the copper industry and the need for mutual development, on June 23, Zhou Bo, Vice President of SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. (SMM), Long Huachen, General Manager of the South China Office, and Lin Jiazhi, Business Manager of the Copper Business Division, visited Guangxi Jinchuan Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd. for discussions and communication. They received a warm welcome from leaders including Xu Jun, General Manager of Guangxi Jinchuan Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd., Zhou Guoqing, Deputy General Manager, Mo Liping, Deputy Manager of the Supply and Sales Department, and business executives Xu Tianli and Liu Jianming. The discussions between the two sides were conducted in a cordial atmosphere. During the discussion session, the two parties leveraged their respective resource advantages for in-depth collaboration. Guangxi Jinchuan has a single-series copper smelting production line that is leading both in and outside China. Leveraging the strategic location near Fangchenggang Port, it serves as a core hub for Jinchuan Group’s expansion into markets outside China. Backed by its mature smelting capacity and advanced processes, and complemented by a digital technological transformation project that enables intelligent control over the entire process, the company has established a digital demonstration production line in the copper smelting industry. SMM, leveraging its big data on nonferrous metal industries, authoritative spot and futures pricing system, and strengths in integrated services across the entire industry chain, precisely addresses the core demands of enterprises in production and operation, cross-border trade, and digital transformation. The two parties engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as copper price analysis, spot-futures coordination, industry chain resource integration, port-side cross-border trade, smelting digital upgrading, and frontier technology collaboration, laying a solid foundation for mutual empowerment and synergistic development. About Guangxi Jinchuan Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd. Guangxi Jinchuan Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd. (hereinafter the "Company") was founded in May 2010 and is located in the beautiful coastal city of Fangchenggang, Guangxi. The Company is a Sino-foreign joint venture controlled by Jinchuan Group Copper & Precious Metals Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jinchuan Group (holding 70% of shares), with Trafigura as a stakeholder. It serves as a maritime gateway and bridgehead for the Gansu provincial government and Jinchuan Group in their pursuit of international operations and expansion outside China, and is highly aligned with the national Belt and Road Initiative, functioning as an export base for Gansu Province on the Maritime Silk Road. Benefiting from the unique coastal advantages and favorable business environment of Guangxi and Fangchenggang City, and relying on the expertise and dedication of all shareholders deeply engaged in the metal processing and trading industry, the Company has, after over a decade of development, achieved an annual production capacity of 800,000 mt of copper products and 3 million mt of sulphuric acid. The Company has received numerous honors, such as being recognized as a National Green Factory Demonstration Enterprise, National Intellectual Property Advantage Enterprise, Guangxi Industrial Leader, Guangxi High-tech Enterprise, Quality Management Benchmark for Industrial Enterprises, Guangxi Intelligent Factory Demonstration Enterprise and Digital Workshop Enterprise, Nomination Award for the Chairperson's Quality Award of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and the Mayor's Quality Award of Fangchenggang City. In 2025, the company achieved operating revenue of 66.7 billion yuan and total industrial output value of 67 billion yuan, ranking 12th among the 2025 Top 100 Guangxi Enterprises and 5th among the Top 100 Manufacturing Enterprises. The Phase I “Double Flash” system, commissioned in 2013, is the world’s largest single-system production system for mined copper by capacity. The technologies employed in the project, including “Double Flash” pure-oxygen smelting, high current density stainless steel cathode electrolysis, low-temperature heat recovery, rhenium recovery from waste acid, and krypton-xenon gas purification, are at a leading level in China. Its comprehensive resource utilization level and key technical and economic indicators lead the industry. In line with Jinchuan Group’s “Trillion Jinchuan” development goal and Fangchenggang’s deployment to build a “100-billion copper industry cluster,” the company launched a 300kt copper system process and digital upgrade project in 2022. The project adopts the internationally advanced “side-blown smelting + multi-lance top-blown converting” technology, takes the lead in the industry in adopting digital design and delivery, simultaneously constructs an intelligent digital factory, and achieves the organic integration of energy flow, material flow, and information flow with operational management, creating a model for the digital transformation of copper smelters in the non-ferrous industry. The project was incorporated into normal production sequence management in May 2025, and the company’s annual total industrial output value has exceeded 65 billion yuan. In 2026, against the backdrop of the global green transition and the ongoing advancement of the “dual carbon” goals, the non-ferrous metals industry is accelerating toward low-carbon, intelligent, and high-end development. South China, as a key non-ferrous metals industry cluster in China, possesses a well-established downstream processing system, abundant recycled resource reserves, and robust policy support. Leveraging South China’s unique industrial foundation and the new development trends of the industry, with the aim of precisely implementing industry-related policies, addressing industry pain points, and building a bridge for resource connectivity across the entire industry chain, the , organized by SMM, will be grandly held from September 9 to 11, 2026 in Nanning, Guangxi . The conference will conduct in-depth discussions on key topics such as metal price trends, medium and long-term market patterns, cross-border trade dynamics, industry policy interpretation, and low-carbon green process innovations. It aims to build an efficient and authoritative platform for industry exchange and cooperation, empower enterprises with technological innovation and green transformation, help industry participants seize market opportunities and calmly address development challenges, and jointly promote the high-quality advancement of China’s non-ferrous metals industry. We sincerely invite colleagues from all sectors of the entire non-ferrous industry chain to gather in Nanning to discuss new industry development opportunities and explore long-term paths for collaborative development of the industry chain! SMM Contact : Lin Jiazhi: 15017566696

On June 24, 2026, Hydrexia and the Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N) of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, signed an industry-academia research collaboration agreement. The two parties will jointly conduct R&D on the coupling of magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage and transport systems with solid oxide fuel cell systems , further exploring the technical possibilities for the synergistic operation of SOFC, SOEC, and magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage and transport products (MHX), and advancing the formation of a zero-carbon energy loop encompassing "green electricity hydrogen production, solid-state hydrogen storage, and high-temperature power generation." Hydrexia has long been committed to the industrialisation of magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage and has continuously pursued cutting-edge research on solid oxide fuel cells. Its self-developed magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage and transport system features operation at ambient temperature and pressure, high hydrogen storage density, and intrinsic safety, and has already achieved batch applications in areas such as cross-border hydrogen transport, energy storage peak shaving, and emergency power supply, forming an integrated product delivery capability from materials to systems. The key to this collaboration lies in the strong thermal energy synergy potential between SOFC/SOEC systems and magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage products. The high-temperature excess heat generated during SOFC operation can be used to drive the release of hydrogen from magnesium-based materials, while the heat released when magnesium-based materials absorb hydrogen can also provide a heat source for SOEC hydrogen production via electrolysis. Through thermal cycle complementarity, system energy consumption is expected to decline significantly, enabling the integrated operation of "hydrogen storage + power generation" , with overall energy efficiency potentially exceeding 90%. Leveraging ERI@N's research expertise in energy materials and electrochemical systems, alongside Hydrexia's experience in the engineering and industrialisation of hydrogen energy products, the two parties will jointly advance the development of integrated high-performance products coupling MHX with SOFC/SOEC. In the future, these technologies could be applied in scenarios such as stationary power supply for AI computing centers, long-duration hydrogen ESS power stations, zero-carbon industrial parks, and off-grid microgrids, providing support for long-cycle, stable clean power supply and facilitating the integration of renewable energy and the reduction of fossil fuel emissions. Professor Zeng Shaohua, Co-Director of ERI@N at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, stated that the collaboration with Hydrexia reflects ERI@N's direction of translating frontier research outcomes into tangible environmental benefits. By combining ERI@N's research facilities and interdisciplinary research capabilities with Hydrexia's experience in hydrogen energy technology, both parties will jointly study the synergistic mechanisms between waste heat recovery and hydrogen storage, thereby advancing next-generation energy technologies and supporting global decarbonisation. Fang Peijun, Chairman of Hydrexia, stated that the company has continuously advanced basic R&D on SOFC and the commercialisation of magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage and transport products over the years. This collaboration with an international university will help break through coupling technology bottlenecks. Hydrexia will leverage ERI@N's scientific research capabilities to accelerate core system iteration and promote the transformation of laboratory results into replicable and implementable standardised products, thereby expanding the large-scale application of hydrogen energy in more scenarios. This collaboration represents not only a technical partnership between academia and industry but also a complementarity between scientific research capability and engineering capability. Looking ahead, Hydrexia will use this collaboration as a starting point to continue deepening R&D on coupling technologies for solid-state hydrogen storage and high-temperature fuel cells, refining integrated solutions across the entire hydrogen energy industry chain, and providing technical support for the high-quality development of the hydrogen energy industry and the global green, low-carbon transition.

Fosbel has highlighted its Ceramic Welding technology as a solution for repairing refractory linings in aluminum furnaces without requiring shutdowns. The process uses an exothermic reaction to fuse new refractory material directly onto existing linings while furnaces remain in operation at temperatures above 1300°F. The technology is suitable for 60%, 70% and 80% alumina refractories commonly used in aluminum furnace applications and is designed to repair worn areas such as metal lines, roofs and sidewalls. Fosbel said the technology can be used for both maintenance and preventive repair programs to extend furnace campaign life and reduce downtime. The company has also introduced Nano-Tec™ ceramic welding powders, thermal cleaning systems and Supertorch equipment to improve repair efficiency, reduce material loss and lower maintenance costs. Hot-repair technologies are increasingly being adopted by aluminum producers seeking higher furnace reliability and operational efficiency.