Shanghai (ZXZC)- GAC Group, the municipal government of Zunyi city, and Guangdong HEC Technology Holding Co., Ltd. (“HEC Technology”) entered into a strategic cooperation framework agreement on Dec. 27 to co-build an industrial chain for lithium ion batteries, according to a post on GAC Group's WeChat account.

Under the framework agreement, the three parties will team up on the projects of energy, the extraction, utilization, and commercialization of mineral resources from aluminum polymetallic ore deposits, and the deep processing of aluminum when the conditions are mature.

Photo credit: GAC Group

Besides, the three parties will further explore the cooperation on the projects related to power batteries, new energy vehicles (NEVs), and the innovation in NEV technologies based on national industry policies and each party’s development strategies.

The cooperation will allow GAC Group to build an industrial chain that integrates mining, mineral processing, production of basic lithium ion battery raw materials, energy storage, and power battery production with Zunyi’s local authorities and HEC Technology, by leveraging local resources and preferential policies of Tongzi county, Zunyi city. GAC Group expects the collaboration to help it lower the costs generated in the industrial chain operations, cement the supply of battery raw materials, and improve its core competitiveness and profitability. 

The newly-signed cooperative project will be managed by Guizhou Province HEC New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (temporary name), which is a planned joint venture between GAC Component Co., Ltd. (a wholly-owned subsidiary of GAC Group), Tongzi County Shixi Coal Industry Co., Ltd. (whose majority shareholder is HEC Technology), and Zunyi Energy & Mineral (Group) Co., Ltd. (a state-owned company in Zunyi city).

GAC Group announced in early Nov. that GAC Component Co., Ltd. had signed a contract with Tongzi County Shixi Coal Industry Co., Ltd. and Zunyi Energy & Mineral (Group) Co., Ltd. to build a joint venture in Zunyi city, namely, the aforesaid Guizhou Province HEC New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. The joint venture will work on the exploration of mineral geology, and the investment, management, and operation of mineral resources.