QuantumScape Sinks 14% as Solid-State Battery Stocks Slide After Earnings

Amprius Technologies announced in late September 2026 that it entered into a US$75 million fixed-price Other Transaction Agreement with the U.S. Government for Project acCELLerate, alongside a separate U.S. Department of War IBAS grant, to build secure domestic high-energy density battery production for small unmanned aerial systems. The awards position Amprius to retrofit an existing South Korea-linked EV battery line into a U.S.-compliant facility capable of producing 12 million silicon-anode cells annually for NDAA-compliant defense customers. The company had already lifted its August 2026 guidance to at least US$140 million in full-year revenue with a narrower net loss. Amprius' narrative projects US$415.0 million in revenue and US$53.6 million in earnings by 2029, yielding a US$22.12 fair value, while the most cautious analysts assume about US$362 million of revenue and roughly US$40 million of earnings by 2029. The growing dependence on government-backed drone programs also concentrates risk should procurement cycles shift.

The 15th Five-Year Plan for the Development of the New Battery Industry, jointly formulated by seven departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, was officially released on September 28, proposing that all-solid-state batteries achieve initial large-scale application by 2030. Boosted by this news, the solid-state battery concept surged again on the morning of September 30, with Transart Technology, Shanghai Xiba, and Xin Ya Zhi Cheng hitting limit up, while lithium battery materials company Lopal Technology was pulled up to a 9.99 percent limit-up. The plan makes arrangements for developing advanced battery materials and high-end manufacturing equipment, proposing to develop isostatic pressing equipment for solid-state batteries, and to develop solid-state electrolytes such as sulfide and halide materials with high air stability, as well as high-performance polymer composite solid-state electrolytes. Lopal Technology recently stated that its solid-state battery precursor product D392 is a high-nickel ternary precursor material tailored for solid-state batteries and launched by its wholly owned subsidiary Sanjin Lithium. Through measures such as element doping and structural adjustment, it has been made more stable, safer, and longer-lasting, and can better solve problems in solid-state batteries such as cracking of cathode materials and high-temperature decomposition of materials.

On the morning of September 29, battery-related stocks continued to strengthen, with Gotion High-Tech surging to the daily limit shortly after the market opened, and buy orders at the top of the order book once exceeding one million lots. After the market close yesterday, Gotion High-Tech announced that the company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries plan to sign investment agreements with Volkswagen Group and its subsidiaries to establish three joint ventures in Spain, Slovakia, and Morocco, investing in the construction of lithium battery and cathode material production bases, with a total project investment of approximately 3.222 billion euros. Recently, seven government departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued the Fifteenth Five-Year Plan for the Development of the New Battery Industry, proposing that by 2030, the scale of China's new battery industry will grow steadily, all-solid-state batteries will initially achieve large-scale application, long-life lithium batteries will reach a cycle life of 15,000 cycles, and leading companies will achieve defect rates at the PPB level. China Securities Co., Ltd. pointed out that 2026 to 2027 is a critical window for validating the mass production process of all-solid-state batteries, and the first batch of gigawatt-hour-level all-solid-state demonstration lines is expected to be launched, with a positive outlook on the allocation value of lithium battery equipment and solid-state battery sectors.

Jin Yinhe announced on the evening of September 27 that it plans to issue A-shares to no more than 35 specific investors, with the number of shares not exceeding 67.8599 million, representing 30 percent of the 226.1996 million total shares outstanding before this issuance, and total funds raised not exceeding 1.5 billion yuan. After deducting issuance expenses, the proceeds will be allocated as follows: 490 million yuan to the industrialization project for high-end intelligent equipment for sodium-ion batteries, consumer lithium batteries, solid-liquid batteries, and new energy storage batteries; 290 million yuan to the research and construction project for high-end intelligent equipment for dry electrodes and solid-state batteries; 270 million yuan to phase one of the silicon-based materials and polymer materials construction project; 100 million yuan to the research and construction project for high-end intelligent equipment for silicone supercritical physical foaming and vacuum thermal reduction of rubidium and cesium metals; and 350 million yuan to supplement working capital. The company's existing equipment mainly targets front-end equipment for liquid lithium batteries, and this fundraising will comprehensively cover next-generation technology routes such as sodium-ion batteries, solid-state batteries, consumer lithium batteries, and new energy storage. The construction period for all projects is 36 months. The after-tax internal rate of return for the sodium-ion battery equipment project is expected to be 15.49 percent, and for the silicon-based materials project 17.72 percent, with investment payback periods of 9.04 years and 7.32 years respectively. After the issuance is completed, Jin Yinhe's total share capital will increase from 226 million shares to approximately 294 million shares. The shareholding of controlling shareholder Zhang Qifa and his concert parties will be diluted from 19.06 percent to 14.66 percent, while control remains stable. In the first half of 2026, Jin Yinhe's dry electrode production equipment for solid-state batteries achieved batch sales and delivery, and in July 2026 it signed an equipment procurement order with Jinlongyu to supply 11 sets of front-end core equipment, including slurry mixing, coating, and cell baking, for its 2 gigawatt-hour solid-state battery mass production line project in the Dapeng New District of Shenzhen.

Mercedes-Benz AG and ProLogium Holding Inc. have signed a joint testing agreement giving Mercedes-Benz priority access to ProLogium's latest Gen4 Superfluidized Inorganic Next-Generation Lithium Ceramic Battery cells. Under the agreement, the Gen4 technology will undergo extensive electrical, thermal and safety testing at Mercedes-Benz's dedicated facilities and specialized external testing institutes, with results used to assess its suitability for potential use in future vehicles. The Gen4 platform aims to combine five core advantages: intrinsic safety, high performance, high energy density, scalable manufacturing and competitive cost structure, with a safety architecture integrating a non-flammable inorganic electrolyte, ceramic separator technology and ProLogium's proprietary active safety mechanism. The deal builds on a partnership of nearly ten years, during which Mercedes-Benz became a strategic investor in ProLogium and holds a Director on its Board, and follows ProLogium's May 2026 definitive business combination agreement with Translational Development Acquisition Corp. under which it is expected to list on Nasdaq under the proposed ticker symbol PRLG. ProLogium's Taoke Gigafactory in Taiwan has completed GWh-scale manufacturing validation, while its planned Dunkirk Gigafactory in France, which broke ground on its first phase in February 2026, is designed to reach 4.0 GWh of annual capacity in phase one and up to 44.0 GWh at full build-out.

Factorial Energy shares jumped 14.4% in Thursday's trading after the company said it will partner with Japan's Mitsui Kinzoku to accelerate the global scale-up of its Solstice all-solid-state battery platform. Mitsui Kinzoku produces sulfide-based solid electrolytes for all-solid-state batteries and is one of few companies worldwide with foundational technology in this space, Factorial said. The Japanese company also produces ultra-thin copper foil and holds an estimated 90% share of the semiconductor market for that foil. Mitsui Kinzoku Senior Executive Officer Kiyotaka Yasuda said the two companies aim to accelerate the realization of next-generation batteries by combining Mitsui Kinzoku's long-established expertise in materials and manufacturing technologies with Factorial's advanced technological capabilities. Factorial Energy shares began trading on Nasdaq in June following the completion of its business combination with Cartesian Growth Corporation III.