Russian lithium hydroxide producer Khimiko-Metallurgicheskiy Zavod posted more than a tenfold increase of its operating profit to 167 million rubles (U.S. $2.3 million) for 2019, according to the company’s latest earnings report.
Khmz’s revenues slid to 2.7 billion rubles on the year, down from 3.18 billion rubles in 2018, a 15 percent decline. The company’s year-on-year profit on sales increased about 20 percent, from 238 million rubles in 2018 to 288 million rubles last year.
The company did not explain the sudden changes in its financial results from year to year. Khmz did not respond to Lube Report’s request for comment by time of publication.
Based in Krasnoyarsk, a city in the central part of Siberia, Khmz is the only Russian producer of lithium hydroxide.
The open joint stock company was created in 1997 after the chemical complex transitioned from state to private ownership. Its main shareholders are Novosibirsk-based Klm (51 percent) and Moscow-based Composite Development (25 percent). Khmz primarily exports its production.
In the lubricants industry, lithium hydroxide is used for the most popular type of grease thickener. The product is also used in the production of electric vehicle and other batteries.