On October 6, CALB Co., Ltd. (HKG:3931), a giant in the EV battery industry, was officially listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and became the first new energy EV battery enterprise in Hong Kong. During the offering period, the first day of the international placement of CALB has realised oversubscription. In addition, the IPO of CALB also attracted 15 cornerstone companies, including Tianqi Lithium (002466.SZ), Han’s Laser Technology (002008.SZ), XPeng-W (09868.HK) and vivo, to subscribe for more than 40% of the global offering shares, almost covering the entire new energy vehicle industry chain, which fully proves that the industrial capital is optimistic about the development prospects of CALB.
The high level of prosperity of the industry will continue, and the short-term adjustment will not change the long-term trend
From the industry level, with the establishment of the dominant position of new energy development in several major global economies, the global new energy vehicle market has grown at a high speed and the penetration rate has continued to increase. According to Frost & Sullivan, the global sales volume of NEVs increased from 1,162.1 thousand units in 2017 to 6,201.2 thousand units in 2021. Global NEV sales are expected to grow at a CAGR of 24.3% from 2021 to 2026, and the global NEV penetration is expected to reach 30.1% by 2026.
Benefiting from the growth of the global NEV market, the automotive industry in various countries has a high demand for power batteries, and the EV battery market has grown steadily. The global EV battery installed capacity is expected to grow at a CAGR of 33.8% from 2022 to 2026 and reach 1,386.7 GWh in 2026. Among them, as the world’s largest EV battery market, with the rapid growth of NEV penetration rate, the healthy development of the industrial chain and the effective control of the pandemic, China’s EV battery installed capacity is expected to reach 762.0 GWh in 2026 with a CAGR of 34.9% from 2022 to 2026.
Therefore, the high level of prosperity of the NEV industry chain is still continuing, and the current adjustment of the new energy sector is not due to changes in fundamentals, but a correction of excessive short-term growth. In the long run, the development of new energy is the trend of the times. After a short-term restructuring, the subsequent performance is worth looking forward to.
Excellent leaders promote the accelerated growth of enterprises, and equity diversification contributes to long-term development
As a leader in the EV battery industry, CALB has an excellent leader to lead the Company through the time cycle and achieve long-term sustainable development. Liu Jingyu, the Chairwoman of the Company, has her unique understanding and insight into the market and has excellent “cognitive power”. The focus on passenger vehicles implemented by CALB in 2018, the restart of commercial vehicles in 2019, and the re-launch of passenger vehicles and energy storage in 2020 are all based on a thorough understanding of the market through full market and customer research, and accurate judgement after a full understanding of the market. Unique strategic vision determines the correct direction of the Company; a keen insight into the market determines the right goals for the Company; a deep understanding of technology determines the right course for the Company; the overall control of production determines the correct layout of the Company.
Under its strong leadership, CALB’s technology iteration has always led the industry’s development, its product strength has been continuously enhanced, and its market share has continued to expand. According to Frost & Sullivan, in terms of installed capacity in the first quarter of 2022, CALB ranked second among third-party EV battery companies in the PRC and fifth globally among the third-party EV battery companies. At the same time, the Company’s revenue increased by 63.0% from RMB1,733.8 million in 2019 to RMB2,825.4 million in 2020, and increased significantly by 141.3% to RMB6,817.1 million in 2021. In the first quarter of 2022, the Company’s revenue was RMB3,897.1 million, with a year-on-year increase of 266.5%.
At present, CALB is a joint-stock enterprise with diversified equity, high marketization, independent management and equity incentive. Through CALB’s business decisions and capacity layout in recent years, it can be seen that the management of the Company can make decisions quickly according to the market demand and changes, and implement them quickly to match the market demand. It is believed that after the listing, the vitality of CALB will be further stimulated, and the subsequent market performance is more worthy of expectation.