(Yicai Global) Oct. 11 -- Chinese battery materials recycler and supplier GEM has penned a second memorandum to boost supplies to South Korean cathode materials giant EcoPro.

According to the memo, GEM will deliver at least 650,000 tons of high-nickel ternary precursor materials, the main raw material for high-energy-density lithium-ion batteries, between 2024 and 2026, the Shenzhen-based company said in a statement late yesterday.

It is the second supply memo signed by the two companies in less than half a year. The first one in April said that GEM would supply 175,000 tons of high-nickel ternary precursor materials to EcoPro by 2023.

According to the second memo, supplies are expected to reach 150,000 tons in 2024, 250,000 tons in 2025, and more in 2026.

GEM’s statement reiterated that each June and December, the pair will determine product pricing based on quotations on the London Metal Exchange and Fastmarkets MB.

EcoPro supplies high-nickel cathode materials for major global battery producers including Samsung, SDI and SK, according to the statement.

The new memo provides a strong guarantee of international market demand that will support GEM’s goal to expand its ternary precursor materials capacity, as well as reducing potential risks from the expansion, it said, adding that the firm will also establish the Shenzhen-based company as a core supplier in the global market.

Shares in GEM [SZE:002340] closed up 2.5 percent at CNY11.5 (USD1.80) today.

Editor: Tom Litting