Salt Chemicals Pressured in 1H, Salt Cavern Gas Storage Accelerated
发布时间:2026-09-07 来源:华泰证券
Suyan Jingshen’s 1H26 revenue came in at RMB2.19bn,-7%YoY,attributable net profit at RMB175mn,-49%YoY,and recurring net profit at RMB158mn,-41%YoY.For 2Q26,attributable net profit was RMB66mn,-64%YoY/-40%QoQ,and recurring net profit was RMB55mn,-56%YoY/-46%QoQ.The earnings decline was driven by lower crude salt and soda ash prices on loose supply-demand,alongside higher coal costs.Maintain BUY,considering the company's integrated salt mining–salt chemical circular production process and the growth potential of its salt cavern gas storage business.
Profitability of crude salt and soda ash declined YoY
1)For salt products,the sales volume rose 6.5%YoY to 4.27mt in 1H26.Crude salt prices fell YoY on weak downstream demand from the two-alkali sector,driving revenue down 4%YoY to RMB1.39bn.In 2Q26,the sales volume increased 7%YoY/3%QoQ to 2.17mt,while the ASP declined 6%YoY/11%QoQ to RMB306/tonne.
2)For alkali products,the sales volume grew 6%YoY to 390kt in 1H26,while revenue fell 9%YoY to RMB430mn.Soda ash prices dropped YoY,as significant new industry capacity came online amid weak demand from both flat glass and PV glass.In 2Q26,the sales volume rose 15%YoY/3%QoQ to 200kt,while the ASP fell 12%YoY but rose 2%QoQ to RMB1,111/tonne.
The company's 1H26 gross margin narrowed 5pp YoY to 29.6%,and the expense ratio declined 1.8pp YoY to 17.3%.In 2Q26,gross margin narrowed 9pp YoY/0.6pp QoQ to 29.3%,while the expense ratio fell 4.7pp YoY but rose 1.2pp QoQ to 18.0%.
Salt cavern gas storage project to start production within 2026
According to Baiinfo,as of 25 August,industrial salt/dense soda ash prices stood at RMB223/1,098 per tonne,down 7%/13%from the beginning of the year.The salt chemical industry is facing concentrated new capacity additions and weak traditional demand from property and PV end-markets.Against this S/D imbalance,crude salt and soda ash prices have declined since the start of 2026.Leveraging its abundant salt mine resources in Huai'an and its industry-first underground circulating soda production process,the company could sustain earnings resilience amid the downcycle,in our view.According to its 1H26 report,the company has completed phase 1of the Zhangxing salt cavern gas storage facility,and the main construction of the brine-to-salt comprehensive utilization project funded by the private placement has been completed,with production targeted within 2026.As the salt cavern gas storage business progresses,we see the company well positioned to build asecond earnings growth engine.
Earnings forecasts and valuation
Given the weak fundamentals for crude salt and soda ash,we lower our earnings forecasts.We now project 2026/2027/2028 attributable net profit of RMB436/628/802mn(previous:RMB549/724/929mn;cuts of 21%/13%/14%),implying EPS of RMB0.46/0.66/0.84.Based on the 2026E average of 20x PE for peers on Wind consensus,and considering the growth potential of the company's salt cavern gas storage business,we assign a2026E PE of 22.5x,deriving atarget price of RMB10.35(previous:RMB11.60,based on 20x 2026E PE vs peers'18x).Maintain BUY.
Risks:intensifying industry competition,weaker downstream demand than we expect,and slower new project progress than we expect.