Lithium-ion batteries

World's largest synthetic graphite anode material producer; ~26% global share. Primary supplier to CATL, LG Energy Solution, and Panasonic.

Japan's leading battery separator film manufacturer (Hipore brand); ~25% global share. Only major wet-process separator plant in the Western Hemisphere (Concord, NC).

Major diversified mining and commodities trading company; produces sulfuric acid as byproduct at its copper, zinc, and lead smelters globally (Australia, Canada, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Philippines, Peru, etc.). One of the world's largest merchants of sulfuric acid from smelting operations. Also one of the world's largest sulfur traders — trades recovered sulfur from refineries and intermediates it to fertilizer manufacturers. Glencore's dual position as a smelter byproduct H2SO4 producer AND sulfur trader gives it market intelligence across both supply sources.

SQM (Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile; NYSE/Santiago: SQM; ~$10.5B market cap 2025; HQ Santiago, Chile) produces battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate alongside lithium carbonate from the Salar de Atacama. SQM's Antofagasta chemical plant converts brine-derived lithium chloride concentrate to both Li2CO3 and LiOH·H2O for export. SQM is the world's largest single producer of lithium chemicals by volume. SQM's LiOH is produced via a causticization route (Li2CO3 + Ca(OH)2 → 2LiOH + CaCO3) rather than the direct spodumene route used by hard-rock converters. Battery-grade LiOH requires >56.5% LiOH content, low impurities (Na <0.005%, Fe <0.001%). In May 2024, SQM signed a public-private partnership with Codelco giving the Chilean state 50%+1 from 2025 to 2060. SQM produced 201,000 MT LCE total in 2024; LiOH accounted for a growing share as NMC-811 adoption accelerated. Source: SQM Annual Report 2023.

Albemarle Corporation (NYSE: ALB; HQ Charlotte, NC; ~$6B revenue 2023) is one of the world's largest lithium producers and the leading US-headquartered lithium hydroxide supplier. Albemarle produces battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LiOH·H2O) at three primary locations: (1) La Negra complex, Antofagasta, Chile — converting Atacama brine-derived lithium chloride to LiOH; (2) Kemerton Lithium Hydroxide Plant, Western Australia — a JV with Mineral Resources Ltd (MRL) that converts spodumene from Greenbushes Mine to LiOH; Train 1 (50,000 t/year) commissioned 2022, Train 2 (50,000 t/year) commissioned 2023. (3) Kings Mountain, North Carolina — historically the world's largest lithium mine (operated 1953-1988), being restarted with US DOE/DOD support for domestic LiOH production. Albemarle is the preferred LiOH supplier for Tesla (NCA cathodes), BMW i-series, and multiple US and Asian battery makers requiring high-nickel chemistry. The 2023-2024 LiOH price collapse compressed Albemarle margins substantially; ALB stock fell ~75% from its 2022 peak.

Chinese battery electrolyte and LiPF6 materials company (SZSE: 002360, HQ Guangzhou; ~RMB 15B revenue); China's largest electrolyte supplier by volume and a significant LiPF6 producer. TINCI produces both the LiPF6 salt and the formulated electrolyte (LiPF6 dissolved in organic carbonates: ethylene carbonate, dimethyl carbonate, diethyl carbonate) for Li-ion battery manufacturers. TINCI supplies CATL, BYD, and multiple Chinese and Korean battery makers. As a vertically integrated electrolyte company (producing both the salt and the formulated solution), TINCI captures more value chain margin than pure LiPF6 producers. China's 2021 LiPF6 spot price spike to >$40,000/tonne was partly driven by the rapid growth of companies like TINCI outpacing raw LiPF6 production capacity.

Overtook Glencore as single-largest cobalt miner via Tenke Fungurume mine (DRC) in 2023; ~15% of global cobalt mine supply from TFM alone.

China's largest fluorochemical producer; manufactures fluorination intermediates used as KSMs for SSRIs (sertraline, fluoxetine, escitalopram) and other fluorine-containing pharmaceuticals

World's largest producer of palladium (~40% of global supply) and a major nickel and platinum producer; Russia-Ukraine war (2022) created palladium supply fears that spiked prices; major automotive catalytic converter raw material chokepoint

Chinese battery materials company (SZSE: 600884; HQ Changsha, Hunan; parent Shanshan Corporation); world's 2nd-largest battery anode material manufacturer (~18% global share) and also a significant cathode material producer. Shanshan Energy (formerly Putailai New Energy Technology / Shanghai Putailai) produces synthetic graphite anodes for Li-ion batteries via petroleum needle coke graphitization. Shanshan Corporation (parent) is a Ningbo-based conglomerate historically known for fashion retail (Shanshan men's suits) that pivoted massively into lithium battery materials in the early 2000s — becoming one of China's first and largest EV battery material companies while its parent still sells business suits. The same Chinese conglomerate that makes business suits also makes the graphite anode material inside CATL and LG Energy Solution batteries.

US-based dry-process (PP/PE) separator manufacturer; ~15% global share; acquired by Sumitomo Electric in 2015. Primary supplier to LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI.

Japanese electronic-grade specialty chemical company (TSE: 4109, HQ Osaka; ~¥50B revenue); producer of ultra-high purity hydrogen fluoride (electronic grade, 5N to 7N+ purity — 99.999% to 99.99999%) used in semiconductor wet etching processes (HF etches silicon dioxide — SiO2 — in a highly controlled manner to pattern silicon chips). Stella Chemifa's electronic-grade HF is the standard product for Japanese semiconductor manufacturers (Renesas, Toshiba Memory/Kioxia, Sony Semiconductor) and exports to Korean (Samsung, SK Hynix) and Taiwanese (TSMC) fabs. In 2019, when Japan restricted exports of semiconductor-grade fluorinated compounds to South Korea, Stella Chemifa was one of the three Japanese companies affected by the export controls (alongside Sumitomo Chemical and JSR). Samsung reportedly had enough Stella Chemifa HF inventory for approximately 1-2 months of production when Japan imposed the restrictions.

Japanese non-ferrous metals and mining company (TSE: 5713, HQ Tokyo); one of the world's oldest mining enterprises — its Besshi Copper Mine in Ehime Prefecture operated from 1691 to 1973, making Sumitomo Metal Mining older than the United States. Today SMM is a leading producer of nickel sulfate for Li-ion battery precursors (NMC/NCA pCAM). SMM operates Coral Bay Nickel Corporation (CBNC) and Taganito HPAL Nickel Corporation (THPAL) in the Philippines — high-pressure acid leach plants that process Philippine laterite nickel ore into mixed sulfide precipitate (MSP), which is then refined into nickel sulfate at the Niihama Nickel Refinery in Ehime Prefecture, Japan. SMM's integrated laterite-to-sulfate pathway (Philippines HPAL → Japan refinery) is one of the most established non-Chinese nickel sulfate supply chains for Korean and Japanese battery manufacturers (Toyota-Panasonic joint venture PPES; Panasonic Energy). SMM is also the world's leading producer of nickel hydroxide for NiMH hybrid vehicle batteries.

Ganfeng Lithium Co., Ltd. (SHEX: 002460, HKEX: 1772; HQ Xinyu, Jiangxi, China; ~$5B revenue) is China's largest and the world's third-largest lithium producer, with dominant capacity in lithium hydroxide conversion. Ganfeng operates multiple LiOH conversion facilities in Xinyu (Jiangxi), Xinjiang, and Chongqing — collectively processing imported spodumene from Mount Marion (WA; 50% JV with Mineral Resources) and brine concentrate into battery-grade LiOH·H2O. Ganfeng supplies LiOH to BMW, Tesla, LG Energy Solution, CATL, and BYD for NMC-811 and NCA cathode manufacturing. Ganfeng's vertical integration — from Australian spodumene mining through Chinese conversion to battery material supply — exemplifies China's control of the LiOH processing chain. Ganfeng also produces lithium metal (for solid-state battery anodes) and other specialty lithium chemicals. Source: Ganfeng Lithium Annual Report 2023.

Japanese specialty fluorine chemicals company (TSE: 4286, HQ Sōja, Gunma; ~¥70B revenue); one of Japan's two dominant LiPF6 (lithium hexafluorophosphate) producers alongside Stella Chemifa, together producing approximately 25-30% of global LiPF6. Kanto Denka's LiPF6 synthesis route uses high-purity HF and phosphorus pentafluoride (PF5) in anhydrous conditions — a highly moisture-sensitive synthesis requiring specialized chemical manufacturing infrastructure. Kanto Denka also produces SF6 (sulfur hexafluoride, used as a dielectric insulating gas in high-voltage electrical switchgear), ClF3 (chlorine trifluoride, used in semiconductor chamber cleaning), and electronic-grade fluorine gases for semiconductor manufacturing — one Japanese specialty chemicals company supplying both the semiconductor fab and the EV battery supply chain from the same fluorine chemistry platform.

Chinese battery electrolyte company (SZSE: 300887, HQ Shenzhen; ~RMB 10B revenue); produces both battery electrolyte formulations and LiPF6 salt for Li-ion batteries. Capchem is the second-largest Chinese electrolyte producer after TINCI, supplying domestic and international battery customers. Capchem differentiates on electrolyte additive chemistry — the small-percentage additives (FEC, VC, etc.) that dramatically improve battery cycle life, low-temperature performance, and safety. Capchem's additive IP is a meaningful competitive differentiator in the increasingly commoditized electrolyte market. Capchem also has US production (California) to qualify for IRA incentives by producing electrolyte in North America.

South Korean specialty materials company (KRX: 020150, HQ Anyang, Gyeonggi-do; ILJIN Group subsidiary); Korea's largest battery copper foil manufacturer, producing electrolytic copper foil at 6-12µm for Li-ion battery anode current collectors. ILJIN Materials operates the IKBC (ILJIN Korea Battery Copper) brand for Samsung SDI, LG Energy Solution, and SK On — the three Korean battery giants that collectively manufacture cells for BMW, Volkswagen, GM, Ford, and Stellantis EVs. ILJIN Materials also has copper foil production in Malaysia (ILJIN Malaysia) for Southeast Asian supply chain diversification. ILJIN Group is a Korean conglomerate spanning ball bearings (automotive), diamond tools (construction), and copper foil — the same Korean conglomerate that makes the bearings in your car's wheel hub also makes the copper foil in its battery. ILJIN Materials was the first Korean company to commercialize battery-grade electrolytic copper foil.

Japanese fiber and advanced materials company (TSE: 3402, HQ Nihonbashi, Tokyo; ~¥2.5T revenue); makes carbon fiber (world's largest carbon fiber producer, Torayca brand — used in Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Airbus A350, Ferrari sports cars), nylon and polyester textile fibers, and lithium battery separators (ceramic-coated PE/PP separators for EV cells). Toray's battery separators (ceramic PVDF coating on base PE) provide enhanced thermal stability and electrolyte retention vs uncoated separators — particularly important for high-energy-density NMC and NCA cells. Toray produces separators at its South Korea and Japan facilities, supplying Samsung SDI and LG Energy Solution. The same Toray company whose carbon fiber flies in 787 Dreamliners and whose Torayca fiber is in racing bicycles also makes the separator that prevents thermal runaway in EV batteries.