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Daniel Ren

Australian-listed lithium producer Galaxy Resources, which delayed its Hong Kong share offering earlier this year, plans to build a battery plant in  Jiangsu province.
It says the plant will be operational by 2013.
Managing director Iggy Tan said yesterday the company would forge ahead with construction, even in the absence of equity financing, in order to meet the mainland's rising demand for lithium batteries. 
'We don't have a cash requirement for now,' he said. 'We are very bullish on lithium demand going forward.'
Tan added that Galaxy would review  its plans for a secondary listing in Hong Kong next year.  
Galaxy is in the process of building a US$100 million lithium carbonate plant in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu. 
It will be the world's fourth-largest factory of its kind, with annual capacity of 17,000 tonnes. 
The products from the plant, which is expected to open by the end of this year, can be used to make batteries.
The battery plant itself, to be built next door, will cost US$134 million. 
Executive director Charles Whitfield said Galaxy could use  bank loans to complete the plant's construction.
Tan would not disclose the figure the company would target from a secondary listing, but insisted Hong Kong was an ideal market for equity financing because of its proximity to mainland China.
Reuters reported earlier that Galaxy was looking to raise US$200 million via the Hong Kong offering.
The earthquake in Japan and unrest in the Middle East prompted the decision to postpone the listing in March.
Lithium batteries are used in a wide range of electronic devices including mobile phones and laptop computers.
They are also an essential component in electric bicycles and other vehicles and Galaxy said it was determined to capitalise on China's increasing production of such vehicles.
The mainland produced 27 million electric bikes a year, constituting a huge potential market for Galaxy, Whitfield said.
Beijing is encouraging the development of 'new-energy' cars to cut pollution from the world's largest car market.
A final plan on its battery plant would be mapped out early next, Tan said. 
The factory will have a capacity of 350,000 battery packs when the first phase of the project is completed.
Last November Galaxy raised A$91.5 million (HK$706.29 million) from investors including Jiangsu-based scrap metals processor Fengli Group and Geely Automobile Holdings chairman Li Shufu.



All go for Galaxy lithium projects