Tokyo-based JFE Chemical Corporation is reportedly joining forces with Chinese companies to establish a battery materials plant in China to supply the domestic and overseas electric vehicles market.
JFE is acquiring a 40% stake in Chinese joint venture company Wuhai Baojie New Energy Materials with China’s Baowu Carbon Materials & Technology Company holding a 51% stake, China’s state Xinhua News Agency said. The remaining 9% stake will be taken by Tianhe Carbon Corporation.
The plant, in Baowu, northern China, will produce graphite cathodes for lithium-ion batteries, according to the news agency.
According to Xinhua, the partners will build the new plant next to an existing Baowu facility. Production is slated to start in 2020 with an expected initial annual output of around 10,000 tons.
JFE said its MCMB (meso carbon micro-beads) graphite boasts “a high packing density, as well as high electric conductivity and high thermal conductivity”.
