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Johnson Matthey continues hot run on car-battery material production deal

Published: April 19, 2021 at 7:36 a.m. ET

By

Steve Goldstein

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An electric car connects with a charger during the 'Motorshow' fair in the western German... — An electric car connects with a charger during the 'Motorshow' fair in the western German city of Essen.
patrik stollarz/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

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JMAT

+0.82%

UKX

-0.07%

Johnson Matthey shares were near the top of the FTSE 100 leaderboard on Monday, advancing as the metals refiner and chemicals company announced a partnership on sustainable battery-materials production.

Johnson Matthey JMAT, +0.82% rose 2%, and has gained 34% this year, after agreeing a deal with Finnish Minerals Group to locate a second commercial plant in Finland for what’s called eLNO cathode materials. “Finland has a favorable battery materials ecosystem, offering reliable access to renewable energy, sustainable raw materials and proximity to major European automotive OEM [original equipment manufacturers] and cell manufacturers,” said the company.

“It could only be a matter of time before traditional combustion engines are completely phased out, so Johnson Matthey is in a race against the clock. Right now, eLNO makes up just a fraction of overall revenue, so the sooner the group can scale up commercial production, the better,” said Laura Hoy, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

It was a mostly quiet day for the FTSE 100 UKX, -0.07%, which held on to the 7,000 level, rising 0.2% to 7,030.69.

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Steve Goldstein

Steven Goldstein is based in London and responsible for MarketWatch's coverage of financial markets in Europe, with a particular focus on global macro and commodities. Previously, he was Washington bureau chief, directing MarketWatch's economic, political and regulatory coverage. Follow Steve on Twitter: @MKTWgoldstein.