by HOU Ruining

Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (CATL) said first-quarter net profit rose 48.52% year on year to 20.74 billion yuan, while revenue climbed 52.45% to 129.13 billion yuan, as strong battery demand boosted earnings.

The company also announced a cash dividend of 69.57 yuan per 10 shares, with total payouts of about 30.45 billion yuan.

CATL said it would set up a wholly owned subsidiary, tentatively named Times Resources Group (Xiamen) Co., Ltd., with registered capital of 30 billion yuan, to serve as an investment platform for new energy mineral resources.

The move aims to secure upstream supply of key materials such as lithium, nickel and phosphorus, strengthening supply chain control.

CATL, the world's largest battery maker, held a 39.2% global market share in power batteries and 30.4% in energy storage batteries last year.

Industry data showed China's power and energy storage battery sales rose 52.9% year on year to 437.1 GWh in the first quarter, driven by strong demand.