Ecopro lifted operating profit 43-fold from a year earlier, supported by the consolidation of an Indonesian smelter, rising metal prices and a recovery in downstream industries. Ecopro said on Tuesday it posted first-quarter consolidated revenue of 822.0 billion won and operating profit of 60.2 billion won. Revenue rose 1.9 percent and operating profit jumped 4,280 percent from a year earlier.

The consolidation of results from the GEN (Green Eco Nickel) smelter in Indonesia, rising metal prices and an improvement in business conditions in downstream secondary battery and semiconductor industries drove the earnings improvement. Average lithium hydroxide prices rose about 80 percent to $18.5 per kg this quarter from $10.3 per kg in the previous quarter, leading to higher product selling prices.

From the previous quarter, revenue rose 15.0 percent to 715.1 billion won, while operating profit increased 28.6 percent to 46.8 billion won. Net profit for the period was 219.4 billion won, returning to profit.

Ecopro BM, which produces cathode materials, posted first-quarter consolidated revenue of 605.4 billion won and operating profit of 20.9 billion won. Rising supply of cathode materials for electric vehicles in Europe and higher sales of cathode materials for energy storage systems due to the spread of AI infrastructure improved profitability.

Precursor maker Ecopro Materials posted revenue of 166.5 billion won and operating profit of 15.7 billion won. Revenue rose 22 percent from a year earlier on the effect of consolidating GEN subsidiaries and higher ESS precursor sales volumes, and it stayed in the black for a second straight quarter after the previous quarter.

Ecopro HN, which operates an environmentally friendly materials business, posted revenue of 34.7 billion won and operating profit of 5.0 billion won. Operating profit rose 47 percent from a year earlier as demand increased for chemical filters on expanded facility investment by semiconductor clients and new orders added for fine dust reduction facilities.

An Ecopro official said, "We saw balanced growth across all business areas, including smelting, precursors, cathode materials and semiconductor materials, and continued the profit trend in the first quarter." The official said, "From the second quarter, when the upward trend in mineral prices is fully reflected in product selling prices, the pace of earnings improvement will gain further momentum."

It is also expanding global production bases. Ecopro is pushing ahead with the Phase 2 project at IGIP (International Green Industrial Park) following Phase 1 at IMIP (Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park) in Indonesia. Investment is under way for the BNSI nickel smelter in IGIP with annual capacity of 66,000 tons, targeting the start of mass production next year.

Its Hungary cathode materials plant aimed at expanding in Europe is set to begin full-scale mass production in the second quarter. It is also seeking to diversify its customer base by securing new original equipment manufacturer clients and expanding external sales for ESS precursors.

Ecopro CEO Ho-joon Song (송호준) said, "Along with high-intensity process innovation to overcome the management crisis, efforts to proactively secure future growth engines such as the Indonesian smelting business are bearing fruit." He said, "If the Hungary plant starts operating in the second quarter and the IGIP project moves ahead successfully, we will secure a super-gap competitive edge in the global materials market and the profit trend will be solidified."