By Kate Yuan

(JW Insights) Sept 28 -- Chinese lithium battery material supplier Ningbo Shanshan (杉杉股份) planned to spend EUR1.28 billion ($1.34 billion) on a lithium battery anode material project in Finland, the company announced on September 27.

Shanshan's unit Shanghai Shanshan Lithium Battery Material Technology will invest in and build the project in two phases. Each will have an annual production capacity of 50,000 tons and a construction period of 24 months, said a Yicai Global report.

The project will meet downstream customers' demand and Shanshan's need to expand overseas markets and continue to increase its global market share, according to the company.

Building the project in Finland is conducive to relying on the local low-cost clean energy and strategic geographic advantages to expand European clients and meet their needs, it noted.

Founded in 1989, Shanshan is based in Ningbo of eastern China’s Zhejiang Province. It focuses on lithium-ion battery cathode materials, cathode materials and electrolyte.

Listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 1996, the company is one of the first enterprises to enter the lithium-ion battery material market in China, according to its official website.

Shanshan also announced on the same day that its subsidiaries Shanjin Optoelectronics Suzhou and Shanjin Optoelectronics Guangzhou plan to acquire South Korean electric battery giant LG Chem's polarizer business and related assets in the Chinese mainland, South Korea, and Vietnam for RMB1.4 billion ($191.5 million), Yicai Global reported.