Hunan Shuopu New Materials launched the 5 billion yuan lithium battery separator project, the R&D and production of lithium-ion battery separators rose rapidly

　　Hunan Shuopu New Materials Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Suopu New Materials"), located in Shenzhen Economic Development Zone, is busy from the company's temporary office area, R&D center to the installation and commissioning site of the new plant. A new material industry base dedicated to the development and production of high-end wet-process lithium-ion battery separators has accelerated its rise.

　　Hunan Shuopu New Materials Co., Ltd. ("Suopu New Materials" for short), located in Shenzhen Economic Development Zone, is busy from the company's temporary office area, R&D center to the installation and commissioning site of the new plant. A new material industry base dedicated to the development and production of high-end wet-process lithium-ion battery separators has accelerated its rise.

　　This lithium battery separator project with a total investment of 5 billion yuan will be fully put into operation in 2021. The annual output of lithium-ion battery separators will reach 1 billion square meters. 2500 jobs.

　　Speed refresh: the first production line was put into operation in 100 days

　　In July last year, Shenzhen, the capital of the new material industry, welcomed a new member-Shuopu New Materials. This new material company invested by Beijing Hongzhuo Capital and related parties has been racing against time. It only took 4 months from signing the contract with the Shenzhen Economic Development Zone Management Committee to the official groundbreaking of the project in mid-November last year. Shuopu New Materials completed the construction of the first phase of the project through reconstruction and refurbishment using Sunward Intelligent idle factory buildings and already-built office buildings and other infrastructure.

　　On March 1st of this year, the company's first coating production line was officially put into operation, just one hundred days before the project started; on March 15th, the first diaphragm production line began to be installed, and it is expected to be officially put into operation in June. This construction progress has set a record in the industry.

　　The entire project is constructed in two phases. The first phase investment exceeds 900 million yuan, covering an area of 187 acres, to build 4 lithium battery diaphragm production lines and 8 coating production lines, and increase the annual production capacity of 200 million lithium battery diaphragms; the second phase investment 4.1 billion yuan to build 16 lithium batteries Separate production lines and 32 coating production lines will increase the annual production capacity of 800 million lithium battery separators.

　　Market opportunities are fleeting

　　“Get on the express train of the new energy industry and focus on the most technically difficult wet process diaphragm production. Time must be exchanged for space.” Zhong Haiyan, chairman of Shuopu New Materials, introduced, the construction of a “cage-for-bird”-style factory building put the project into production One year in advance to win development opportunities. It is also the original intention of the Shenzhen Economic Development Zone Management Committee to replace labor-intensive enterprises with high-tech enterprises, replace traditional heavy industries with environmentally friendly new energy industries, and enhance the use value of unit land area.

　　Innovation first: Introduce core talents and accelerate localization

　　"Separator is a key material for lithium batteries, and the market demand is showing a spurt of growth." Zhang Yang, general manager of Shuopu New Materials, introduced that although the cost of lithium battery separators only accounts for 15%-20% of the battery cost, it directly affects the safety of the battery. , Functional characteristics and cycle life. Because of this, the barriers of diaphragm technology are higher. Although the global diaphragm market has reached billions of square meters, with an average annual growth rate of 30%, domestic product supply accounts for less than 40%, and most of them are dry-process diaphragms. High-end wet-process diaphragms still mainly rely on imports from South Korea and Japan, and localization The replacement space is vast.

　　, which is determined to catch up with and surpass the new material, the main production line adopts fully imported Korean equipment, and the quality of the product has reached the international first-class standard. We hire a group of 8-10 Japanese and Korean core technical experts with high salaries, all of whom have worked in top lithium battery companies such as Samsung, SK, Celgard, LG Chem and A123 in the United States. Gather a group of domestic professionals who have been in the lithium battery industry for many years, and establish close cooperation with many scientific research institutions.

　　As a result, Sopu’s intelligent production of "the entire line of imported equipment + Japanese and Korean quality control + Japanese and Korean production technology" has been realized; the full localization of international advanced lithium battery separators has been continuously accelerated.

　　"The high-end wet-process PE diaphragm and ceramic coating diaphragm produced by Shuopu are thinner and stronger, so that the battery has a larger capacity and better consistency, which is in line with market needs and the development law of the battery industry." Zhang Yang said , The company's series of products will break the monopoly of Japan and South Korea and reach the world's leading level.

　　At present, Shuopu has made every effort to conquer the wet-process lithium-ion battery separator production process, and has a number of independent intellectual property rights such as water-based bonding technology, coating pore-making technology, and separator coating graft modification technology. With the completion of the factory, it will soon be used for large-scale production.

　　Aiming at the goal: Be the leader who comes from behind

　　Around 2013, well-known foreign diaphragm manufacturers reduced their prices by 30% in order to seize the Chinese market, especially to monopolize high-end diaphragm products. "The localization of high-end diaphragm products must be put into production faster to form a greater production capacity." said Zhong Haiyan, chairman of Shuopu New Materials. Shuopu New Materials has solved the problems of insufficient thermal stability, low puncture strength, and low porosity that are common in domestic wet-process lithium battery separators, and various related technical parameters are among the forefront of the industry. The company has also set up a research and development center in South Korea to study the international cutting-edge aramid coating formulation process and equipment technology, which is expected to be put into mass production in the second half of this year. "Continue to seek technological breakthroughs and achieve the ultimate in quality and service, and market demand will continue." Zhong Haiyan said that a group of companies have already booked the products of Shuopu New Materials.

　　Related data from listed companies Xingyuan Materials and Cangzhou Pearl show that high-end diaphragm products are in short supply, with a gross profit margin of more than 50%. Taking the domestic and foreign first-class lithium battery diaphragm enterprises as a reference, the direction of Shuopu New Materials is clearer and the development is more expected. "Capital, talent, and technology are all there, and our goal is to be an industry leader that comes from behind." Zhong Haiyan said sonorously.

　　So far, Sopu New Materials has reached strategic cooperation with well-known automotive power lithium battery manufacturers such as Jiangxi Chi, Jiangxi Funeng, Tianjin Lishen, and will soon join hands with Shenzhen BYD, Fujian Ningde Times, South Korea's LG and other famous brands. For many years, once the production capacity is fully released, Shuopu New Materials will become an upstart in the industry or a natural outcome.