Minth Group Limited Business Report FY ended Dec. 2016
Financial overview
| (in million yuan) | FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2015 | Rate of Change | Factors |
| Sales | 9,399.99 | 7,654.12 | 22.81% |
-Steady growth for Japanese and Chinese OEMs in China market; -Rapid growth for SUV modle; -Business growth for European and American customers. |
| Gross profit | 3,250.45 | 2,427.69 | 33.89% |
Improve productivity efficiency and control efficiency through the following methods: -Implementation of centralized procurement; -Implementation of lean production; -Optimize production layout; -Carry out technological innovation. |
| Profit before tax | 2,118.60 | 1,568.78 | 35.05% | |
| Profit for the year | 1,799.43 | 1,319.71 | 34.83% |
Recent Development
-Minth Group Limited will invest USD 400 million to construct new headquarters in the Anji Economic Development Zone. The company signed an agreement on this project with the authorities of the development zone on March 30, 2017. With this establishment, the company will reorganize and move its sales subsidiaries, R&D center, and administration divisions to the development zone as well. It also plans to invest in projects related to mining, trading and agricultural development. (From news releases issued by multiple sources on April 4, 2017)
New Product
-In July 2016, Minth Group Limited began producing cameras for automotive safety systems in Ningbo. The cameras are 18mm X 18mm in size, the industry’s smallest, and are manufactured on the world’s first fully automated assembly line for in-vehicle cameras. The camera uses four 190-degree wide angle lenses, which enables 360-degree 3D panorama shooting. The company is aiming to increase its annual production volume for the cameras to approximately 6 to 7 million units by around 2018. (From news releases issued by multiple sources on July 19, 2016)
Plant Expansion
-Martin Orozco Sandoval, governor of Aguascalientes, announced that Minth Group, a Chinese auto parts manufacturer, will expand their facilities in the State, with a USD 350 million investment and the creation of over 270 jobs. Additionally, there are ongoing expropriation processes for several plots of land at the Gigante de los Arellano Industrial Park, where the new plant will be set up, and the construction is planned to start in the third trimester this year. The pieces produced here, will be shipped out to the Renault and Daimler plants in Aguascalientes and BMW in San Luis Potosi. (From a Mexico-Now article on April 18, 2017)
New Company
-Minth Group Limited announced that Jiaxing Sinoone Investment Co., Ltd., its subsidiary, has agreed to establish a joint venture with Clean Wave (HK). The new company will be called Jiaxing Clean Wave E-Drive Systems Co., Ltd. It will be capitalized at USD 29.41 million, of which 51% will be invested by Jiaxing Sinoone and 49% will be invested by Clean Wave (HK). Jiaxing Clean Wave E-Drive Systems will develop, produce, and sell electric drive systems that include motors, controller, and decelerating devices for new energy vehicles. (From an announcement by the company on August 24, 2016)
-Cheerplan (China) Investment Co., Ltd., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, announced that the company and Fujitsu Electronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. will establish a joint venture. The new company will be called F&M Technology Limited, and will mainly produce and sell automotive camera modules. It will be capitalized at CNY 5.2 million, of which 60% will be invested by Cheerplan (China) and 40% will be invested by Fujitsu Electronics (Shanghai). (From an announcement by the company on April 22, 2016)
-Cheerplan (China) Investment Co., Ltd., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, and Haartz Corporation, a U.S. based supplier of interior trim material, have jointly established Haartz-Minth (Ningbo) Automotive Ltd. in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China. The joint venture is capitalized at USD 12 million, of which 40% was invested by Cheerplan (China) and 60% was invested by Haartz Corporation. The new company will produce and sell soft interior trim materials for automobiles. (From an announcement by the company on April 22, 2016)
-The Company announced that the company and U.S.-based Haartz Corporation will establish a joint venture in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. The new company will be called Haartz-Minth (Ningbo) Automotive Ltd. It will produce thermoplastic olefin materials for automotive interior parts such as door panels, instrument panels, and consoles using Haartz' extrusion molding technology. Production is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2017. (From news releases issued by multiple sources on April 13, 2016)
Acquisition
-Minth Group Limited announced that Cheerplan (China) Investment Co., Ltd., which is its wholly owned subsidiary, Huai'an Development Holdings Co., Ltd., and Shiyi (China) Co., Ltd. have reached an agreement on a capital expansion plan for Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd. Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle is a developer and manufacturer of electric vehicles and is indirectly owned by Minth Group Limited.
The three companies agreed that Huai'an Development and Shiyi (China) will invest an additional USD 49.7 million each in Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle, which will increase the EV manufacturer’s capital to approximately USD 130 million from the current USD 33 million. After the transaction, Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle will be owned 12.7% by Cheerplan (China) Investment, 50% by Huai'an Development, and 37.3% by Shiyi (China). It will no longer be an indirect subsidiary of the Minth Group. (From an announcement by the company on March 3, 2017）
R&D activities
-The Group has R & D centers in China, Japan, North America and Germany.
R&D facilities
| Company Name | R&D activities | Location | Shareholding (%) |
| Shanghai Cogen Research and Design Co., Ltd. | Design of automobile exterior and interior decorative parts | Shanghai | 100 |
| Ningbo Minth Automotive Parts Research & Development Co., Ltd. | Design consulting on stamping dies and auto parts | Ningbo Zhejiang |
100 |
R&D Expenditure
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 (million RMB) |
FY ended Dec. 31, 2015 |
FY ended Dec. 31, 2014 (million RMB) |
|
| R&D Expenditure | 390.51 | 330.57 | 298.71 |
| Ratio of R&D expenses to | 4.15% | 4.32% | 4.47% |
Patents
-In 2016, the Group filed 189 patent applications for approval and 103 patent applications were authorised by the competent institutions.
Technical alliance
| Partner | Agreement |
| Sankei Giken Holdings Co.,Ltd. | To provide technology, technological support, and expertise on certain types of auto-parts to the Group and to grant non-exclusive rights to use the technological expertise to manufacture auto-parts for Guangzhou Honda and Dongfeng Honda (Wuhan ). |
| AAPICO Hitech Public Company Limited | To provide technical services and activities related to the design, manufacture, sale, import, export and after-sales services of automobile components in Thailand. |
| Tokai Kogyo Co., Ltd. | To provide technological support. |