PRET(SZ:002324) Sou Hu Cai Jing·2025-07-01 06:48Core Viewpoint - Company has decided to terminate a planned 10 billion yuan new energy project after two years of planning and will instead invest 1 billion yuan to enhance its new materials business [1][6]. Group 1: New Materials Investment - Company announced the establishment of a wholly-owned subsidiary, Guangdong Plit New Materials Co., Ltd., with a total investment of 1 billion yuan for the construction of a plastic modification materials headquarters and R&D manufacturing base in South China, expected to have an annual production capacity of 400,000 tons [1][3]. - The project will be developed in two phases, with the first phase focusing on automotive-grade modified plastics and the second phase targeting low-altitude economy and humanoid robot applications [3][4]. - Current production capacity is at full utilization, with a design capacity of 480,000 tons per year and a utilization rate of 99.89% [5]. Group 2: Termination of New Energy Project - Company has decided to terminate the planned 30GWh sodium-ion and lithium-ion battery production base project in Liuyang, Hunan, due to changes in the macro environment of the new energy industry [6][8]. - The project was initially announced with a total investment of 10.2 billion yuan, but no substantial construction had commenced as of the announcement date [6][7]. - The company's new energy business has faced challenges, with a significant drop in gross margin from 18.24% in 2023 to 2.69% in 2024, while the gross margin for modified plastics was 18.64% [6][7]. Group 3: Financial Overview - As of the end of the first quarter, the company's cash balance was only 778 million yuan, raising concerns about funding for new investments [1][8]. - Despite a decline in revenue by 4.54% to 8.314 billion yuan in 2024 and a nearly 70% drop in net profit to 141 million yuan, the company anticipates a recovery in its new energy business by 2025 [7][8]. - The company has raised 1.079 billion yuan through a private placement in 2023, increasing its cash balance from 379 million yuan at the end of 2022 to 1.437 billion yuan at the end of 2023 [8].