Annual revenue of 15.6 billion! Shanghai emerges with a new energy battery IPO, supplying to CATL and BYD

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In recent years, with the development of new energy vehicles, energy storage, and other industries, the market size of new energy batteries has rapidly expanded. Now, companies in this field are also seeking IPOs in Hong Kong.

Gelonghui has learned that recently, Shanghai Putailai New Energy Technology Group Co., Ltd. (“Putailai”) submitted its prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, planning to list on the Main Board, with China International Capital Corporation serving as its sole sponsor.

Putailai (603659) is an integrated solution provider for the upstream of the new energy battery industry chain, mainly engaged in film materials and coating processing, anode materials, and more. As of the close on March 20, the company’s market value exceeds 67.5 billion yuan.

What is the current situation of the new energy battery market? Let’s take a closer look today.

01

Over 70% of revenue comes from key materials for new energy batteries, facing customer concentration risk

New energy battery technology centers on lithium-ion batteries, with new technologies such as sodium-ion batteries and solid-state batteries accelerating R&D and industrialization.

Dividing by downstream application fields, new energy batteries can be categorized into energy storage batteries, power batteries, and consumer batteries.

Power batteries are mainly used in new energy vehicles; energy storage batteries are used in energy storage systems, power transmission and distribution, electricity consumption, and data centers; consumer batteries are used in mobile phones, laptops, drones, small robots, and wearable devices.

The upstream of the new energy battery industry chain includes cathode materials, anode materials, separators, electrolytes, aluminum-plastic packaging films, and functional materials—core materials for batteries—as well as equipment for battery materials and manufacturing. Participants include not only Putailai but also Hunan Yune, Defang Nano, Rongbai Technology, Dangsheng Technology, BTR New Energy, Sanyou Shares, Tinci Materials, Xinzhou Bang, Enjie, Star Source Material, and others.

The midstream focuses on manufacturing and assembly of various new energy batteries, including lithium-ion, sodium-ion, and solid-state batteries, with players such as CATL, BYD, Zhongchuang Hang, Guoxuan High-tech, EVE Energy, Sunwoda, Ruipu Lan Jun, Haichen Energy Storage, Zhuhai Ganyu, Desay Battery, ATL, and more.

The downstream applies the batteries produced by the midstream broadly in new energy vehicles, energy storage systems, consumer electronics, and other scenarios, with participants including Tesla, BYD, Li Auto, NIO, Xpeng, Geely, State Grid, Southern Power Grid, Sunshine Power, Haibo Sico, and others.

Source: Zhuoshi Consulting; Image from the prospectus

Putailai mainly engages in R&D, manufacturing, and sales of key materials for new energy batteries and automated equipment for new energy batteries.

In the field of new energy battery materials and services, the company can supply coating separators, film materials, anode materials, and functional materials independently, or provide integrated material solutions tailored to specific process requirements of customers, including CAAS electrode sheet OEM services.

In the field of automated equipment and services for new energy, the company offers automated production equipment and related technical services for manufacturing new energy batteries and materials, as well as integrated, customized solutions from key materials to core equipment.

Specifically, from 2023 to 2025 (the “Reporting Period”), over 70% of the company’s revenue will come from key materials for new energy batteries, with revenue from automated equipment increasing from 22.4% to 26.5%. A small portion of other income comes from sales of scraps.

Revenue breakdown by product type, image from the prospectus

Putailai directly purchases raw materials and components from suppliers. During the reporting period, raw materials accounted for approximately 47.7%, 52.8%, and 59.3% of total sales costs, respectively. Rising raw material prices or changes in transportation and storage costs could increase the company’s production costs.

The company actively expands its global customer base in the power, energy storage, and consumer markets, maintaining partnerships with leading battery manufacturers and automakers such as CATL, BYD, Sunwoda, LG New Energy, Samsung SDI, ATL, Zhongchuang Hang, Ruipu Lan Jun, Zhuhai Ganyu, EVE Energy, Ganfeng Lithium, Geely Auto, Volkswagen, and others.

Putailai’s main clients are new energy battery manufacturers. During the reporting period, revenue from the top five clients accounted for 70.4%, 66.1%, and 58.4% of total revenue, respectively. The largest client contributed about 39%, representing a significant proportion. Losing or significantly reducing orders from major clients could impact the company’s profitability.

Notably, by the end of 2025, the company’s inventory balance exceeds 8.9 billion yuan, while trade receivables and notes receivable amount to 5.828 billion yuan, indicating a large scale and potential risks of inventory impairment and customer credit.

Putailai sells products in China and other regions globally. From 2023 to 2025, revenue from mainland China will increase from 85.1% to 94%, with a declining trend in overseas revenue.

02

Performance fluctuations and intense industry competition

In recent years, Putailai’s performance and gross profit margin have fluctuated.

In 2023, 2024, and 2025, the company’s revenue was approximately 15.293 billion, 13.399 billion, and 15.656 billion yuan, respectively, with gross profit margins of 25.9%, 22.1%, and 29.7%. Corresponding net profits were about 2.153 billion, 1.387 billion, and 2.614 billion yuan.

In 2024, due to oversupply in lithium battery capacity, weak downstream demand, and falling product prices, revenue decreased. In 2025, increased market demand led to higher sales of key materials for new energy batteries, boosting revenue.

Company operating performance, image from the prospectus

It is worth noting that from 2023 to 2025, R&D expenses decreased from about 961 million to 888 million yuan, showing a downward trend.

Additionally, as a capital-intensive industry, the company needs substantial capital investment in equipment procurement and production base construction. By the end of 2025, the company’s interest-bearing bank loans and other borrowings totaled 10.414 billion yuan, with financial costs exceeding 230 million yuan. Continued reliance on borrowing to support operations could increase liquidity risks.

Putailai’s performance is influenced by demand in the end-market of new energy batteries. Technological progress, development of alternative materials, replacement cycles, and overall economic conditions could all impact the market size of new energy batteries.

Driven by rising penetration of new energy vehicles, increasing demand for energy storage, technological advancements, and cost reductions, the global market size of new energy batteries grew from 530.5 GWh in 2021 to approximately 2,257 GWh in 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 43.6%.

Looking ahead, with the global energy transition and carbon neutrality goals, the market size of new energy batteries is expected to continue expanding, with a projected CAGR of 22.7% from 2025 to 2030.

Source: Zhuoshi Consulting; Image from the prospectus

Among these, the separator is one of the key materials in new energy batteries. Its main functions are to prevent contact between the cathode and anode materials, avoiding short circuits, while allowing ions to migrate freely to ensure normal battery operation. The global market size for new energy battery separators is 36.5 billion square meters in 2025, expected to reach 94.3 billion square meters by 2030.

In 2025, the global shipment volume of anode materials for new energy batteries is about 3.04 million tons, expected to exceed 7.85 million tons by 2030, with a CAGR of 20.9%.

Although the industry is growing, competition remains fierce. According to Zhuoshi Consulting, in 2025, the global coated separator industry for new energy batteries is highly concentrated, with the top five players accounting for 70.9% of the market share. Among them, Putailai holds a 35.3% share, making it the largest supplier of coated separators for new energy batteries worldwide, but it faces competition from Enjie, Star Source Material, Jinhui New Energy, SK Innovation, and others.

In 2025, the company’s shipment volume of anode materials ranks sixth globally, accounting for 4.7% of the industry. Increased competition could impact its market share in the future.

03

Former fund managers start businesses, Shanghai emerges with an IPO

Putailai was founded by Liang Feng and Chen Wei in 2012, restructured as a joint-stock company in 2015, and listed on the Shanghai Main Board in 2017. Its headquarters is located in Pudong New Area, Shanghai.

By the end of 2025, the company employs 5,912 full-time staff, over 90% of whom are in China, with a few overseas.

Employee breakdown by function as of the end of 2025, image from the prospectus

In terms of ownership structure, as of March 10, 2026, Liang Feng, Ningbo Shengyue, and Ningbo Kuoneng collectively hold 45.01% of the voting rights, forming the controlling shareholder group.

Liang Feng, aged 58, obtained a master’s degree in economics from Zhejiang University in 2003. He has served as a fund manager at Huaxia Fund Management, Huatai Bairui Fund Management, and as a director at Shanghai Chengyi Private Equity Fund Management. Since December 2015, he has been chairman of Putailai.

Chen Wei, aged 55, earned a bachelor’s degree in precision instruments from the University of Science and Technology of China in 1993. He previously worked at Dongguan Nancheng Xinke Magnetic and Electronic Products Factory, Dongguan Huangcun New Energy Electronic Factory, Dongguan New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., and co-founded Putailai with Liang Feng, serving as general manager.

Han Zhongwei, aged 51, obtained a Ph.D. in economics from Middlesex University in the UK in 2007. He has held roles including deputy general manager, secretary of the board, and CFO at Shanghai Metsä Group. He joined Putailai in November 2015 and has served as director, deputy general manager, secretary of the board, and CFO.

In 2023, 2024, and 2025, Putailai paid dividends of approximately 473 million, 298 million, and 358 million yuan, respectively. In March 2026, the company declared a dividend of 484 million yuan, expected to be paid before the IPO.

For this Hong Kong IPO, the company plans to raise funds to expand production capacity, including building new anode material facilities in Malaysia and new separator film production lines in Sichuan; support R&D projects mainly focused on advanced anode and separator materials and new solid-state battery electrolytes; and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Overall, benefiting from the growth of the new energy vehicle and energy storage industries, Putailai has become a leading global supplier of coated separators and an important player in the anode materials field. However, the company also faces risks such as raw material price fluctuations, high customer concentration, and large inventory scale. In the fierce industry competition, whether the company can balance technological iteration, global expansion, and risk management will be closely watched by Gelonghui.