Hubei Xingfa Chemicals Group (Xingfa Chemicals) and Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt (Huayou Cobalt) have signed a cooperation framework agreement to collaborate around the entire industry chain of new energy lithium battery materials, Kallanish reports.

The two parties agreed that in accordance with the principle of one-time planning and step-by-step implementation, they will jointly invest in the integrated industries of phosphate mining, phosphorus chemical industry, wet-process phosphoric acid, iron phosphate and lithium iron phosphate materials.

The plan is to produce 500,000 tonnes/year of iron phosphate and 500,000 t/y of lithium iron phosphate as well as related supporting projects in Yichang, Hubei Province.

Xingfa Chemicals is listed in Shanghai. It focuses on the development, production and salesof phosphorus chemical products and fine chemical products. It owns a national-level industry and technology park in Yichang, which has been receiving policy-level support as well as subsidies for its exhaust treatment technique and other green tech development.

Huayou Cobalt has also been involved in the energy transition. Before 2015, the company was committed to becoming a leading company in the global cobalt industry while focusing on cobalt resources acquisitions, domestic and foreign smelting, capacity expansion, and resource development. After 2015, the company’s position shifted to lithium-based batteries.

While maintaining its advantages in cobalt resources and smelting, the company switched its development focus to the vertical integration of lithium battery materials. The company has been extending its business in nickel smelting, precursors and cathode materials. The ternary precursor produced by the company has entered the supply chain of power battery manufacturers such as LG, SK, CATL, and BYD.