Chinese EV battery maker CATL has said it is set to raise at least $4bn in its secondary listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange, to fund its giigafactory in Debrecen, Hungary.
CATL is set to have the biggest share sale ever in Hong Kong with its second listing on the stock exchange to fund its second European gigafactory.
Shares are set to start trading on Monday (20 May), with the company selling around 118m shares listed at HK$263 ($33.80) per share. After beginning to take investor orders this week, its Shenzhen-listed shares rose 3.5%. Most of the shares will be offered internationally, while 8,8m will be issued in Hong Kong.
The listing is set to be the biggest share sale in Hong Kong and the largest listing globally so far this year, according to the FT. There will be more than 20 cornerstone investors, including Chinese oil firm Sinopec, Kuwait Investment Authority sovereign wealth fund and Asian firm Hillhouse Investment.
CATL is planning to use most of the net proceeds (around 90%) for construction of its Debrecen, Hungary battery plant, its second in Europe, following its facility in Erfurt, Thuringia in Germany.
When first announced in 2022, CATL said it will invest €7.3bn ($8.1bn) in the Debrecen plant, which is in close proximity to BMW, Stellantis, VW and Mercedes-Benz plants, helping to localise their EV supply chains in Europe.
CATL has been heavily investing in battery plants in Europe in recent years, predominantly through partnerships with automotive OEMs. In December, the battery firm partnered with Stellantis to invest up to €4.1 billion ($4.3 bn) for a large-scale lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery plant in Spain through a 50-50 joint venture.
The EV battery maker has been part of a growing trend of Chinese-based EV firms looking to break into the European market through partnerships and cash injections. While there are tariffs of up to 38% on Chinese EV imports to Europe, these apply only to finished vehicles, and China has been localising EV supply chains in the continent with competitive pricing.
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