Ecopro BM, 3rd quarter operating profit of 12 billion won... 76% decrease from last year (comprehensive)

Ecopro BM [247540] announced on the 5th that it recorded 557.9 billion won in sales and 12 billion won in operating profit on a consolidated basis in the third quarter of this year.

Sales and operating profit decreased by 10.7% and 76.2%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. However, it has maintained operating profit surplus for seven consecutive quarters since the first quarter of last year.

By business, EV sales recorded 256.1 billion won, down from the previous quarter due to the slowing growth of the North American electric vehicle (EV) market and inventory adjustments by European automakers.

On the other hand, thanks to increased investment in artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, sales of cathode materials for energy storage systems (ESS) increased 173% compared to the previous quarter to KRW 123.6 billion.

With the expansion of semiconductor production facilities and data center construction, sales for power applications also increased by 16% to KRW 169.7 billion.

Ecopro BM predicted that performance in the non-electric vehicle sector such as ESS will continue to be solid in the fourth quarter, thanks to investment in AI infrastructure and growth in the new and renewable energy market.

In addition, we are responding to the demands of European automobile customers by operating two production lines at the Debrecen plant in Hungary. We plan to proactively respond to the standards for applying battery materials produced in Europe, which will be strengthened after next year.

We plan to finalize our equity investment in Indonesian nickel smelter BNSI and prepare for commercial operation in the first half of next year to strengthen vertical integration from securing raw materials to producing cathode materials.