Splurging Over 80% of Annual Net Profit on Overseas Factory Construction, Putailai Targets Southeast Asian Lithium Battery Industry Chain

The Beijing News Shell Finance News (Reporter Lin Zi) Pu Tai Lai announced a major plan on the evening of March 11: it intends to invest 2.051 billion yuan to build a lithium battery anode material production base in Kedah, Malaysia, with an annual capacity of 50,000 tons, over a construction period of 24 months.

Just a week ago, Pu Tai Lai released its 2025 annual report, showing that the company achieved an operating revenue of 15.711 billion yuan for the year, a year-on-year increase of 16.83%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company reached 2.359 billion yuan, a 98.14% increase year-on-year. Supported by nearly doubling net profit, this leading lithium material company has chosen to allocate over 80% of last year’s net profit to overseas capacity expansion.

According to disclosed information, the direct driving force behind this investment is the changing demand from downstream customers. In recent years, Chinese automakers like BYD, Neta, and Great Wall have accelerated their entry into the ASEAN market, while battery manufacturers such as CATL and LG New Energy are gradually establishing production capacity in Southeast Asia. For upstream material suppliers like Pu Tai Lai, this presents a practical issue: as automakers and battery factories establish roots overseas, upstream material suppliers must follow suit, or they risk losing their existing supply relationships.

Over the past year, Chinese lithium battery material companies have been intensively expanding into Southeast Asia. By 2025, BTR’s anode material project in Indonesia will officially be operational; companies like Zhongke Electric and Xinzhoubang have also set up operations in Malaysia, Singapore, and other locations.

“To respond to the capacity layout and localization needs of downstream core customers in Southeast Asia, this project will enable coordinated domestic capacity to serve the global market once completed,” Pu Tai Lai stated in the announcement. After completion, the project will enable nearby delivery to the client’s overseas factories, which will not only improve supply stability and response speed but also reduce logistics and transportation costs.

This “full industry chain coordinated overseas expansion” pattern is reshaping how Chinese companies compete in Southeast Asia.

Editor: Yang Juanjuan

Proofreader: Zhao Lin