Posted in the China Times:...

Posted in the China Times: https://www.chinatimes.com/amp/realtimenews/20231121003941-260410

Converted to english:

Likai-KY (5227) is one of the few companies outside mainland China that possesses complete manufacturing technology and patents for LFP lithium battery materials. It has successfully licensed its technology to three companies: Freyr in Norway, ICL in the United States, and Avenira in Australia. The company is expanding into European, American, and Indo-Pacific markets. Its clients' end uses include energy storage, electric vehicles, electric cargo trucks, and solid-state batteries, with some clients beginning to increase their production scales. The global electric vehicle market is concentrated in three regions: mainland China, the United States, and Europe. Regarding why to develop in Europe, America, and the Indo-Pacific, Likai's Chairman, Zhang Shengshi, explained as follows:

Likai-KY stated that regardless of how batteries transition from liquid to solid state, the one irreplaceable component is the cathode material. Founded in Taiwan in 2005, Likai has focused on lithium battery cathode materials for 18 years. It is one of the few companies outside mainland China with complete LFP lithium battery material manufacturing technology and patents. Currently, it has licensed its technology to three companies: Freyr in Norway, ICL in the US, and Avenira in Australia, expanding into European, American, and Indo-Pacific markets. The applications for its clients include energy storage, electric vehicles, electric cargo trucks, and solid-state batteries, with some clients beginning to scale up production.

In terms of developing in Europe, America, and the Indo-Pacific, Zhang Shengshi pointed out that the global electric vehicle market is focused on three regions: mainland China, the United States, and Europe. For mainland China, battery cores, materials, or AI-related developments are inaccessible. The new energy vehicle industry in mainland China is very mature. Likai-KY was invited by the US Department of Defense and the United Nations in 2018 to discuss how to re-establish the lithium battery industry in the United States. Thus, Likai-KY had been contemplating licensing its technology overseas for five years, seeing the United States as a great opportunity.

Zhang further stated that Likai Electric has licensed two companies in the United States to build factories, including Freyr in Norway and ICL in the US. Their clients are US-based energy storage factories or electric vehicle manufacturers. As a Taiwanese company granting the license, it has received subsidies from the US Department of Energy. For example, ICL is building the first lithium iron material factory in the US with an investment of $400 million and received a subsidy of $190 million. However, another company, Ningde Times, licensed to Ford, was denied a subsidy, highlighting Taiwan's friendly and allied status in the eyes of the United States, a positive for Taiwanese manufacturers.

Regarding the European market, Zhang expects Europe to introduce similar subsidies within a year, as Europe has heavily relied on the mainland China market in the past. Recent anti-subsidy investigations by France and Germany into mainland China's electric vehicles indicate a changing trend, presenting an opportunity for Likai-KY to accelerate its efforts. As for India, due to its anti-China sentiment, the United States, Europe, and India are important battlefields for Likai.

Zhang believes that Likai-KY can help more European, American, and Indian clients find more lithium battery technology, including mass production technology for anode materials and improvements in electrolytes, and will apply for patents for key materials to supply them, helping them establish supply chains. Taiwan could become an IP center, continuously exploring global technologies for worldwide development.The Chairman emphasized that LFP is not a standard product, and each customer requires 3-5 years of customization. The product life cycle can last up to 20 years. Among its 48 effective clients, 12 have nearly reached mass production, and Likai-KY expects to license more international manufacturers by 2024. Likai-KY is also continuously developing new technologies, such as high-density lithium iron phosphate, lithium iron manganese phosphate, and new types of lithium iron phosphate for the semi-solid battery market, anticipating the application of semi-solid batteries and the use of all-solid-state batteries in Europe and America by 2030.