Motors Tracker

China's largest new energy vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology swallowed an 8-percent decline in its first-half net profits as the Covid-19 pandemic pummeled the macro economy, triggering a decline in NEV sales volume. CATL reported CNY18.8 billion (USD2.7 billion) in first-half operating revenue in an annual 7.08 percent drop, and realized net profit of CNY1.9 billion, according to the company's half-year earnings report it issued yesterday. The Ningde, Fujian province-based firm did not issue its customary first-half and third-quarter forecasts this year. China produced 350,000 NEVs and sold 336,000 units domestically in the first six months, down a respective 42 percent and 44 percent on the year. CATL's operating revenue from power battery sales plummeted 21 percent to CNY13.5 billion over the period in consequence. Shipments have increased markedly as the pestilence eases and the macro economy gradually recovers, it added. The news came as no great su...

China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology, the world’s biggest power battery maker, and Mercedes-Benz are upgrading their partnership with the aim of giving the German carmaker’s new EQS luxury sedan mileage of over 700 kilometers and double the charging speed of current models. The arrangement includes the full range of battery technologies, including cells and entire battery systems, along with the shared development of cutting-edge technology, Ningde, Fujian province-based CATL said in a statement yesterday. “Mercedes invented the car more than 130 years ago and has developed its technology with countless innovations,” CATL founder and Chief Executive Robin Zeng said. “This combined with CATL's expertise in battery, will be a decisive step to both parties' electrification strategies.” The collaboration will make CATL a leading supplier of Mercedes-Benz, under Stuttgart-based auto giant Daimler, to guarantee the battery supplies of the EQ series in the n...

Nio’s new battery asset management company will start operating next month making the Chinese electric vehicle startup’s vision of separate ownership of car and battery a reality. Battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology is keen to invest in the new venture, technology media 36Kr reported today, citing people familiar with the matter. Nio’s battery swap concept has been a long time in the making and it is currently the only new energy vehicle maker in China with battery swap technology. Consumers can buy the battery with the vehicle or they can choose to rent a battery. The new unit will manage Nio’s power battery assets and offer Battery as a Service products, in other words the rental of a range of electric car batteries that can be adapted to fit the particular needs of different car owners and minimize costs. Battery rental can lead to savings of CNY100,000 (USD14,290), according to the Shanghai-based firm’s website. Batteries can also be exchanged immediately, doing away with...

China’s largest electric vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology completed CNY19.7 billion financing (USD2.8 billion) from nine investors who made its final cut, the firm said in its latest statement. Hillhouse Capital Group invested CNY10 billion, Honda Motor China Investment CNY3.7 billion, and seven companies including UBS and J.P. Morgan Securities the remaining CNY6 billion, Ningde, Fujian province-based CATL announced on July 17. The company’s private placement was priced at CNY161 (USD23) per share, equal to 98.28 percent of the average price of CNY163.81 in the 20 trading days before the investment subscription date, and 124.16 percent of the minimum offering price of CNY129.67 per share. The funding, which is over three times the amount it raised in its 2018 listing, will go to lift production and fuel research and development to hone the company's competitiveness against overseas rivals in an ever-more cut-throat terrain. This CNY161 starting price is not lo...

Contemporary Amperex Technology's equity price jumped after Japan’s Honda Motor said that it will subscribe to the Chinese battery behemoth's new shares to ensure supply. CATL's stock price [SHE: 300750] climbed 5.4 percent to CNY215 (USD30.70) this morning. Meanwhile, the Tokyo-based company's shares [TYO: 7267] rose 6.1 percent to JPY2,798 (USD26.20). The Japanese carmaker will purchase a 1 percent stake in the Chinese electric vehicle battery maker, the Ningde-headquartered firm said in a statement on July 10, without disclosing the price. But based on the available stock data, Honda is estimated to purchase more than 24 million shares, spending as much as CNY5 billion (USD713.9 million). In late June, China's securities regulator approved CATL's issuance of no more than 221 million new shares to expand its production. It attempts to raise no more than CNY19.7 billion (USD2.8 billion). CATL and Honda have joined hands before. The Chinese firm penned an agreem...