The brief

Analyst view

• NMC cathode supplier to major automakers via multi-year contracts; plants in Poland and Korea.
• H1 2026: €1.9B revenues (+7.1% YoY), €577M EBITDA (+33.5%) on take-or-pay compensation.
• Advancing manganese-rich HLM chemistries for 2026+ market entry.

Technical approach

As reported

Cathode materials

NMC chemistry optimization

Umicore produces NMC (nickel-manganese-cobalt) and very-high-nickel variants that balance energy density, cost and safety for automotive lithium-ion packs.

Next-generation chemistries

HLM: high-capacity, low-cost, manganese-rich

Manganese-rich formulations reduce dependence on cobalt and nickel, lower cost and improve stability. HLM is planned for 2026+ market introduction.

Recycling integration

Closed-loop material recovery

Umicore's Recycling business recovers nickel, cobalt and other metals from spent batteries and scrap, reducing reliance on mined materials.

Scale and supply chain

Multi-region production

Production in Poland and Korea supplies major automakers, with North American demand served from Umicore's Cheonan facility.

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