Research Express | Qinghai Salt Lake Industry receives research from 159 institutions including CITIC Securities; 2025 net profit of RMB 84.76 billion; dual enhancement in potassium and lithium production capacity

On April 1, 2026, Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Qinghai Salt Lake Industry”) held an institutional research via conference call, with the participation of 159 institutions including CITIC Securities, China International Capital Corporation, UBS Group, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and others. The company’s board secretary Li Shun, head of the securities legal affairs department Miao Xia, and securities affairs representative Ju Min engaged in in-depth discussions with the institutions on core issues such as 2025 operational performance, development of the potash and lithium sectors, resource integration, and future planning.

Basic Information of the Research

2025 Operational Performance: Key Indicators Fully Improved

According to reports, in 2025, Qinghai Salt Lake Industry successfully completed its production and operation tasks, with continuous improvement in operational performance. The company achieved an operating revenue of 15.5B yuan and a net profit attributable to the parent of 8.48B yuan for the year. By the end of 2025, total assets reached 55.78B yuan, liabilities were 7.9B yuan, asset-liability ratio was 14.15%, return on net assets was 22.30%, operating cash rate was 119.28%, and the core indicators of the “One Profit and Five Ratios” were comprehensively optimized, with steady enhancement in development quality and efficiency.

Dual-Drive of Potash and Lithium Main Sectors: Capacity and Technology Synergy

Potash Sector: Ensuring Supply and Stabilizing Prices to Strengthen Food Security

In 2025, the company produced 4.9002 million tons of potassium chloride and sold 3.8147 million tons, fully ensuring the supply of fertilizers for spring farming in China. Through technological optimization, the comprehensive recovery rate of potassium resources significantly increased, the unit product energy consumption of potassium chloride decreased year-on-year, water usage was reduced by 27%, equipment availability remained above 95%, and products with potassium chloride content above 95% accounted for 85%. On the marketing side, an innovative “bi-weekly pricing” mechanism was implemented, leading over 60% of the domestic market supply to guide potash fertilizer prices back to a rational range.

Lithium Sector: Capacity Expansion and Technological Breakthroughs Progressing Together

In 2025, the lithium sector produced 46.5k tons of lithium carbonate and sold 45.6k tons. The 40k-ton-per-year integrated lithium salt project was completed and put into operation at the end of September, adopting an independently developed “adsorption + membrane” lithium extraction process, achieving “production upon commissioning.” In 2025, approximately 5,500 tons of lithium carbonate were produced, with product purity stable above 99.7%. The project’s lithium recovery rate reached 82.4%, and comprehensive energy consumption decreased by 50.67%, making it the world’s largest salt lake lithium extraction facility with a single-scale design.

Resource Integration Deepening: Acquisition of Minmetals Salt Lake to Consolidate Industry Position

To promote the construction of a world-class salt lake industry base, the company completed a cash acquisition of 51% of Minmetals Salt Lake in December 2025 at a cost of 46.5k yuan. Minmetals Salt Lake’s core assets are located at Yiliping Salt Lake, with lithium chloride reserves of 1.6459 million tons and potassium chloride reserves of 14.6311 million tons. It has established capacities of 15k tons/year of lithium carbonate, 2k tons/year of lithium phosphate, 1k tons/year of lithium hydroxide, and 300k tons/year of potash fertilizer. After the acquisition, Qinghai Salt Lake Industry’s potassium chloride capacity reaches 5.3 million tons, lithium carbonate capacity is 95k tons, further strengthening resource and technological synergy advantages.

Institutional Focus and Company Responses

Future Main Business Planning: Anchoring the “Three-Step” Strategy

The company stated that it will focus on China Minmetals’ “Three-Step” strategy, aiming to serve as the “national team” for potash fertilizer supply and the “main force” for new energy raw material supply. It will promote efficient utilization of potash salts, improve the quality and quantity of lithium salts, achieve breakthroughs in magnesium salts and high-value utilization of rare and scattered elements, strengthen the entire salt lake industry chain layout, and improve resource development efficiency.

Operation of the 40k-ton Lithium Salt Project: Significant Efficiency and Cost Advantages

This project adopts “continuous ion exchange moving bed + membrane coupling” technology, with a lithium recovery rate of 82.4% and a 50.67% reduction in comprehensive energy consumption. Digital and intelligent transformation has been implemented to digitize production equipment, maintaining high operational efficiency.

Cost and Inventory of Potassium Chloride: Multiple Measures to Reduce Costs and Ensure Supply

In 2026, the company will deepen the “Amoeba” management model, optimize “mining + beneficiation + dissolution” technology, and build a digital equipment management system to substantively optimize potassium chloride costs. During the spring farming period, production capacity and inventory will be coordinated to ensure stable market supply.

Product Price Outlook: Tight Balance for Potash Fertilizer, Lithium Carbonate May Rebound in the Second Half of the Year

The potash fertilizer market remains tightly balanced due to supply chain fluctuations and agricultural demand; lithium carbonate supply was ample in the first half of the year, but is expected to rebound in the second half driven by the new “Mineral Resources Law” and explosive growth in energy storage demand. The company leverages its technological and resource advantages to maintain industry-leading costs.

Dividend Plan: Not Meeting Conditions for Distribution, Future Will Actively Reward Shareholders

Due to negative undistributed profits at the end of the consolidated and parent company financial statements, no dividends will be distributed in 2025. The company has revised its Articles of Association to clarify the concept of “balancing prudent operation with active shareholder returns.” When conditions are met in the future, it will explore diversified ways to reward shareholders.

Technological R&D: 874 Authorized Patents Leading the Industry

In 2025, the company persisted in innovation-driven development, achieving breakthroughs such as wastewater desalination for lithium carbonate production (reducing water consumption per ton by 20%) and the large-scale application of “continuous ion exchange + membrane” technology. It filed 80 patent applications during the year, with 93 new patents authorized, totaling 874 patents. The “Improving the Efficiency of Potash Fertilizer Centrifuges” project won first prize at the China Innovation Methods Competition. Its core technological competitiveness continues to lead the industry.

Looking ahead, Qinghai Salt Lake Industry will continue to focus on the efficient comprehensive development of salt lake resources, strengthen technological empowerment and resource integration, and make every effort to ensure national food security and resource and energy security.

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