(Yicai Global) March 16 -- Hunan Yuneng New Energy Battery Material, a Chinese supplier of the cathode materials used in lithium iron phosphate batteries, is linking arms with battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology, which is also one of its shareholders, to develop and produce the next generation of electric car batteries.

Yuneng New Energy plans to customize, design and manufacture a new type of lithium iron phosphate battery for CATL over the next four years according to the technological requirements provided by the battery manufacturer, it said yesterday.

The pair will split the costs and liabilities of the project and either share or separately own the intellectual property rights generated by the research program, the Xiangtan, central Hunan province-based firm added, without going into more detail. No information was given about the specifications or performance metrics of the batteries to be developed.

The collaboration with Ningde, southeastern Fujian province-based CATL, which holds a 7.9 percent stake in Yuneng New Energy and is the third-biggest stakeholder, will not only help Yuneng New Energy improve product performance, but will also allow it to get a better understanding of clients’ needs, it said.

CATL and BYD, another battery maker, are Yuneng New Energy’s two biggest clients, accounting for over 80 percent of revenue. Both are also shareholders in the firm, which went public on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange’s Nasdaq-style ChiNext board last month.

Editor: Kim Taylor