[SMM Analysis] On March 12, 2026, the US International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled against imposing tariffs on Chinese graphite imports. Below is the complete timeline of the US anti-dumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) investigations into active anode material (graphite anode) from China, the duty rates at each stage, and the latest results as of March 12, 2026.

This week，the solid-state battery industry showed a dual-engine momentum driven by "intensive breakthroughs on the technology front and targeted solutions on the policy front." CATL disclosed a sulphide patent, Zhongkeyuanben's 20Ah all-solid-state battery passed third-party detection, and Dreame Technology released a 450Wh/kg product; Guangdong took the lead in incorporating diversified solid-state battery technology routes and eVTOL scenarios into provincial-level action plans.

This week，the solid-state battery industry showed a dual-engine momentum driven by "intensive breakthroughs on the technology front and targeted solutions on the policy front." CATL disclosed a sulphide patent, Zhongkeyuanben's 20Ah all-solid-state battery passed third-party detection, and Dreame Technology released a 450Wh/kg product; Guangdong took the lead in incorporating diversified solid-state battery technology routes and eVTOL scenarios into provincial-level action plans.

February 2026 coincided with the Chinese New Year holiday. Affected by holiday factors, production pace across core segments of China’s sodium-ion battery industry generally slowed, showing an “off-season reset” trend. From cathodes, anodes, and electrolyte to battery cells and end-users, production across all segments declined MoM to varying degrees, while YoY still maintained a certain degree of growth resilience.

[SMM Aluminum Express] As a key investment promotion project in Zhijiang City, the Hubei Sunstone annual 1 million mt new-type carbon materials project is jointly invested by Sunstone Development and Zhouzheng Industrial & Trading Co., Ltd., with construction commencing in February 2023. "Calcined petroleum coke can be used to manufacture prebaked anodes required for aluminum production and is also widely used in the production of lithium battery anode materials and key auxiliary materials," said Zhu Taoyuan, Deputy General Manager of the company. Since the production start in September 2024, all eight pot calciners have been put into operation, and the four calcined petroleum coke production lines are running at full capacity.

This week (February 27, 2026–March 5), more players entered the solid-state battery industry, with various parties “riding” the hype: Sunstone Development and TONZE stated that their sulphide projects were still in the early R&D stage; QingTao’s Wuhai 2 billion yuan project released its EIA public notice, and a 3.5 GWh production line in Taizhou commenced operations; Suzuki acquired Kanadevia’s solid-state battery business

Recently, Sunrise New Energy (EPOW.US) announced progress in its sodium-ion battery business. In 2025, the company was approved for two major special projects by the Guizhou Provincial Department of Science and Technology, focusing on the R&D of "hard carbon anode materials for sodium-ion batteries." The project is expected to commence construction in H2 2026 and is anticipated to begin production this year, further expanding its technological layout. It is reported that the project primarily leverages Guizhou and Qianxinan's abundant coal resources, as well as biomass resources such as moso bamboo, walnut shells, and corn stalks, to conduct research and application of high-performance hard carbon anode materials for sodium-ion batteries. The aim is to enhance the quality of hard carbon anode materials, achieve energy utilization of certain biomass scrap, and promote the enterprise's economical and green development.

Recycling Industry Events This Week (September. 22-27)

[Market Trends of Natural Graphite from 7.21-7.25] This week, the price of natural graphite anode materials remained stable under the combined influence of supply and demand and cost factors. Looking ahead, as the pace of innovation in artificial graphite anodes accelerates and the capacity of vapor deposition silicon-carbon producers continues to expand, downstream customers are gradually shifting their procurement focus towards alternative materials to reduce costs and achieve performance upgrades. This will compress the market demand space for natural graphite anodes. Considering various factors, it is expected that the price of natural graphite anode materials will continue to be under pressure in the future.

The total investment in Ruizhi New Materials' project with an annual output of 60,000 mt of graphite anode materials for lithium batteries is approximately 1.42 billion yuan. The project will be constructed in two phases. The first phase, with a capacity of 60,000 mt of graphitised anode materials for lithium batteries, is expected to commence trial production in Q1 2026.