TLC(SZ:002466) 21世纪经济报道·2025-03-27 12:25Core Viewpoint - Tianqi Lithium Industries reported a significant loss of 7.9 billion yuan in 2024, highlighting the severe impact of market fluctuations and operational challenges in the lithium industry [2][6][10]. Financial Performance - In 2024, the company's revenue was 13.06 billion yuan, a decrease of 67.75% compared to 2023 [5][9]. - The net profit attributable to shareholders was a loss of 7.9 billion yuan, marking a decline of 208.32% from a profit of 7.3 billion yuan in 2023 [5][10]. - The gross profit margins for lithium ore and lithium compounds were 63.71% and 35.21%, respectively, down by 26.73 and 38.64 percentage points year-on-year [8]. Operational Challenges - The decline in lithium product prices led to a significant drop in the company's overall gross margin, exacerbating the losses [6][10]. - The company faced additional pressures from its subsidiary, Talison, which affected the pricing mechanism for lithium salt products, resulting in cost overruns [6][10]. Investment Losses - Tianqi Lithium's investment in SQM resulted in a loss of 8.85 billion yuan, contributing to an overall investment loss of 8.4 billion yuan for the year [10][12]. - The company recorded substantial asset impairment losses totaling 2.11 billion yuan, significantly higher than the previous year's losses [12][13]. Market Position and Future Outlook - The company's market capitalization has drastically decreased from nearly 220 billion yuan in July 2022 to approximately 50.9 billion yuan by March 2025, reflecting an evaporation of nearly 169.1 billion yuan [15][16][17]. - The management acknowledged the cyclical nature of the lithium industry and emphasized the need for strategies to mitigate the impact of price volatility on performance [18][20]. - The new chairperson, Jiang Anqi, outlined plans to enhance resource supply stability and expand production capacity, aiming to strengthen the company's competitive position in the lithium market [20][21][22].