Chapter 411 Rare Earth
On the morning of July 10, Dewen Manufacturing Headquarters Building.
The morning light shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Song Ci was reviewing documents with his head down when suddenly a knock on the door interrupted his thoughts.
A smart and capable young woman with short hair and wearing a smoky grey business suit pushed the door open and said, "Director Song, everyone in the meeting room is here."
Song Ci raised his head and greeted the woman. This was Su Lan, his secretary at Dewen Manufacturing. Together with Jian Ning, she was responsible for daily administrative support at work.
In the meeting room, the four presidents of Dewen Manufacturing and Lu Chenggong, the general manager of the supply chain company, sat upright and waited quietly. When they saw the big boss coming to the meeting, everyone subconsciously stood up to greet him.
"No need to be so formal!" Song Ci raised his hand and sat down in the main seat.
Secretary Su Lan followed behind him and quietly sat down in the corner, preparing to take minutes of the meeting.
"Director Song!" "Chairman."
Etiquette should not be abolished, so everyone greeted each other honestly and then started today's meeting.
President Wang Fengying presided over the meeting: "Mr. Lu, you can start your report."
Lu Chenggong straightened his back and said in a clear voice: "Mr. Song, leaders, the supply chain company has made a major breakthrough in the acquisition of Talison Mining.
Last month, with the assistance of JPMorgan Chase, the Australian wholly-owned subsidiary Winfield successfully acquired 19.9% of Talison Mining's shares, becoming the second largest shareholder and successfully vetoed Lockwood's acquisition plan at the shareholders' meeting.
Just yesterday, the company received a letter of no objection from the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board, confirming that Deven's acquisition of Talison is in the security interest and allowing the company to take the next step. "
Hearing this, even Song Ci, who was known for his calmness, couldn't help but show his joy.
Passing the Australian security review means that the acquisition obstacles have been cleared and Talison Mining is already in Dewen's pocket.
Wang Fengying, Tang Jun and others were also delighted.
Lithium ore is a strategic resource in the era of new energy. With the acquisition of Talison Mining and the African cobalt mines, Dewen has already taken the lead in the upstream of the industrial chain.
Lu Chenggong was filled with emotion. Previously, the chairman planned to implement the "snake swallowing an elephant" plan to acquire an overseas mining company. He thought his boss was daydreaming, but now that big things are about to happen, it proves that he was short-sighted and ignorant.
"At present, Winfield has signed the Implementation Rules of the Arrangement Arrangement with Talison, and will acquire the remaining 80.01% of the shares at a price of 7.5 Canadian dollars per share, 15% higher than Lockwood's bid. However, it will also need to pay a reverse breakup fee of 25 million US dollars."
“What is the total cost of this acquisition?”
"The equity acquisition, loan interest and service fees paid to JPMorgan Chase are about 800 million US dollars."
"Sign the agreement as soon as possible!" Song Ci's tone was firm, but he also felt a little pressure in his heart.
Since the establishment of Dewen Manufacturing, it has been spending money like water. In order to seize the opportunity and quickly complete the layout, it has invested a huge amount of US$4 billion. Fortunately, everything is beginning to show results.
Lu Chenggong quickly agreed: "Don't worry, Mr. Song, the transfer of all shares of Thales Mining will be completed by the end of this month, and all shares will be injected into Xiangjiang Dewen International before October."
Song Ci was full of energy and confidence: "Now that we have cobalt and lithium mines from abroad, the only thing left for Dewen to supply the entire industry chain is the rare earth sector!"
Wang Fengying turned her gaze to Lu Chenggong, her eyes sharp: "Mr. Lu, the chairman personally came forward to establish a huge advantage for the supply chain company. You can't just sit back and enjoy the results, right? Do you have any plans for the rare earth business?"
Lu Chenggong took a deep breath, knowing that an important test moment in his career had arrived. The company was just starting out and there was a lot of work to be done. The appointment of department heads was just a transition. If they failed to make achievements, they would naturally have to step down and let others take over.
Fortunately, as for the position of general manager, he had done sufficient market research on the rare earth industry, which gave him enough confidence to meet this challenge.
"Mr. Song, the rare earth market in the north is almost monopolized by Baosteel Group. As a new entrant in the industry, it would be too costly for our company to rashly participate in direct competition.
Therefore, I suggest that the strategic focus be shifted to ionic rare earths, and that the medium and heavy rare earth veins in southern provinces such as Jiangxi, Guangdong, and Fujian be seized.”
Song Ci tapped the table with his fingertips and agreed: "The idea is right. Now is the critical period for the integration of the rare earth industry in the southern region.
Once we miss this window, it will be difficult for the company to achieve anything in the rare earth industry. We must race against time and make good use of this precious window to implement our plans.”
The boss's affirmation lifted Lu Chenggong's spirits: "Considering the company's core business positioning of new energy and high-end manufacturing, the company plans to focus on investing rare earth resources in the research and development and production of high-performance NdFeB materials."
“NdFeB?”
Seeing Song Ci's puzzled expression, Wang Fengying explained in a low voice: "Mr. Song, NdFeB is a permanent magnet material. It is the core basic material for new energy vehicle drive motors, wind turbines, energy-saving home appliances, and industrial motors."
Song Ci suddenly realized, with a gleam in his eyes: "The idea of extending to high value-added materials downstream of the rare earth industry chain is very good."
After the episode, Lu Chenggong continued, “Next, I plan to leverage the company’s strong financial strength to work closely with local governments in southern rare earth producing provinces.
Participating in local rare earth groups, establishing joint ventures with regional operating companies, etc., to obtain mining separation indicators. "
At this time, Tang Jun suddenly said: "Mr. Lu, this year is the peak period for the country's environmental protection rectification and elimination of backward production capacity.
I suggest paying attention to those small and medium-sized separation companies that are compliant and have decent technology but are struggling to operate. Through mergers and acquisitions, they can quickly expand production capacity and obtain separation indicators, killing two birds with one stone. "
Lu Chenggong was stunned at first, then he said sincerely: "I really didn't consider this point. I didn't think it through. Mr. Tang's suggestion is very valuable. I will arrange to follow up immediately."
Song Xueying, who was standing by, glanced at Tang Jun meaningfully.
The management of Dewen may not be familiar with Tang Jun, but she is an old employee from Tengda and knows that he is a famous file king of Tengda.
His key abilities are still strong, and he was able to make accurate suggestions at the meeting. It was obvious that he had done enough homework in advance.
As expected, Song Ci immediately made arrangements: "Tang Jun, you will take the lead in the merger and acquisition, and you will also be responsible for coordinating and recommending cooperation with local governments to mine rare earths. Report any problems to me in a timely manner."
Song Xueying watched this scene and sighed in her heart, opportunities really come to those who are prepared. With some suggestions and advice, Tang Jun successfully took control of the supply chain company, one of the five core businesses of Dewen Manufacturing.
Tang Jun smiled confidently and responded immediately: "Okay, Mr. Song. I have already researched and compiled a list of some small and medium-sized enterprises before the meeting, and will hand it over to Mr. Lu after the meeting."
At this moment, the former president of WeChat was filled with fighting spirit.
It can be seen from Dewen's manufacturing strategic layout that once the boss's plan can be completed, Dewen will grow into a world-class manufacturing giant within ten years.
It will have a significant impact on the entire country and even the world, and its potential may even exceed that of Tengda Group.
He must demonstrate his value at a critical stage of the company's development in order to gain Song Ci's trust and reuse, and obtain greater development space and generous option rewards.
Song Ci nodded slightly and solemnly instructed: "Domestic rare earth mining will be fully handed over to you, and I will also arrange to invest in mines overseas to hedge risks.
However, the iron must be hard to forge, and the company's separation and smelting technology and environmental protection level must be continuously upgraded.
In short, the supply chain strategy is to focus on medium and heavy rare earths, tie in the demand for new energy and wind power permanent magnets, and concentrate on penetrating high-value links.”
After the words fell, Song Ci looked at his favorite general again: "Tang Jun, I have carefully considered the plan you submitted to propose that the company set up a scrap metal recycling subsidiary. It is indeed forward-looking and has strategic value."
Tang Jun was delighted: "I am also considering this. If the company can use the cobalt and lithium recycling network to simultaneously obtain rare earth resources, it can effectively reduce marginal costs."
Song Ci chuckled and said, "Internet companies focus on closed-loop ecology. This is Internet thinking, but there is nothing wrong with your idea.
Mineral resources are non-renewable, and metal recycling is also a key track for future development. The sooner you plan, the better.
After the meeting, you can distribute the materials to everyone for study, and we will discuss it at the next meeting. If there is nothing else, let's end today's meeting here."
Witnessing the interaction between Song Ci and Tang Jun, Wang Fengying felt invisible pressure and quickly talked about some progress in her work:
"Mr. Song, the demolition and resettlement work of the Jiangbei factory site has entered the final stage. The leaders of Jiangsu Province and Jinling want to hold a groundbreaking ceremony. I hope to invite you to attend."
As Dewen Manufacturing continues to make big moves in the global mining market, it has increasingly attracted the attention of local governments, especially the Jinling government, which has made every effort to promote Dewen's new energy vehicle manufacturing project.
"When exactly is the ceremony scheduled?"
"Early September."
Song Ci shook his head and rejected it: "Not in the first half of the month! As an entrepreneur representative, I have to go to Russia to attend the APEC meeting in early September!"
Several people in the conference room were secretly shocked when they heard this. Wang Fengying reacted quickly: "I will communicate with the leaders of Jinling immediately and try to advance the time. I will report to you as soon as it is confirmed."
Song Ci was about to get up and leave the meeting room when he suddenly remembered something.
"Mr. Wang, please communicate with the Beiping government to see if you can get a piece of land near the Tengda Group to build the Dewen Manufacturing Headquarters Building."
The land price in Peking continued to rise, and the sooner the company's headquarters building was completed, the more cost-effective it would be. In addition, in order to facilitate his work, it would be best if Dewen could be close to Tengda, saving him the time of running back and forth.
In this way, he had a meeting at Dewen Manufacturing in the morning, worked at Tengda Group in the afternoon, and went home to have dinner with his wife in the evening. The richest man spent his ordinary day quietly.
At dusk, in the dining room of Jingyuan's home, in order to maintain her figure, Liu Shishi only took a few bites of the food, then put down her chopsticks and virtuously served a bowl of soup to her husband.
"Yi Yi, the wedding photos we took earlier have been developed."
"It's developed so quickly! Show it to me later." Song Ci was in high spirits. He and Liu Shishi took five sets of wedding photos in different styles.
"I'm going to Russia in September. Should we do another shoot in Red Square?"
"Okay." Liu Shishi's eyes lit up. Which woman could refuse to wear a beautiful wedding dress and leave her beautiful figure in a world-famous tourist attraction?
Before this, she and Song Ci took five sets of wedding photos indoors, in the Forbidden City, on the Bund, at Peking University, and in Paris, and they were looking forward to their trip to Russia.
The couple chatted about family matters and quickly finished their dinner.
Song Ci was used to going out for a walk after dinner. Seeing Liu Shishi sitting on the sofa with the servants serving her fruit snacks, he asked curiously, "Why don't you go out for a walk with me?"
Liu Shishi raised her eyebrows and smiled, "The Xuan-Yuan Sword premieres tonight, I want to watch some TV."
"Okay." Song Ci chuckled, turned and walked out of the living room, strolling in the night to digest his food.
At 7:30 p.m., the ancient costume fantasy drama "Xuan-Yuan Sword", produced by Tangren Film and Television and co-starred by Liu Shishi, Hu Ge, Tang Yan and others, premiered on the Hunan Satellite TV Golden Eagle Exclusive Theater.
This drama has been a hot topic since its preparation. The fact that it is starred by Yi Jie and is Hu Ge's last fantasy drama is full of gimmicks.
After the first episode was aired, related topics were already on Weibo's hot search list. When the first two episodes were finished, the entire network was abuzz with discussions, and the top ten hot search lists were all dominated by "Xuan-Yuan Sword".
At this time, the lights at Donghai Tangren Film and Television are bright, and all staff are working overtime tonight to follow up on the grand premiere.
Cai Yinong browsed the hot search list intently.
"1. Liu Shishi Tuoba Yuer"
"2. Hu Ge Yuwen Tuo"
“3. The premiere of “Xuan-Yuan Sword””
. . .
Looking at the ever-rising popularity and the crazy influx of comments from netizens, Cai Yinong could hardly hide his joy.
Judging from the current response, the ratings of "Xuan-Yuan Sword" are bound to explode. As for whether it can replicate the glory of "Startling by Each Step", we can only wait and see how it develops.
Across from her, Hu Ge was also watching the trending searches on her phone, waiting for the premiere ratings to come out: "Looking at this momentum, the ratings for Xuan-Yuan Sword should be pretty good, Sister K, you can rest assured."
Cai Yinong smiled brightly: "Thanks to you and Shishi, the two of you are a guarantee of the ratings. What a pity..."
As the words came to his lips, the president of Tangren felt regretful. "Xuan-Yuan Sword" might be the last time the two top stars of the company would work together.
Hu Ge will transition to the big screen and serious dramas in the future. As for Liu Shishi, after her marriage and filming of "The Imperial Doctress", she may even choose to retire and return to her family.
“I don’t know if Jiang Jinfu and Gulinaza can carry the banner of Tangren after this drama.”
As if sensing Cai Yinong's uneasiness, Hu Ge consoled her, "Sister K, Xuan-Yuan Sword is a big hit, and I think Jinfu and Naza's popularity and status will also rise."
"I hope so." Cai Yinong sighed. It is not easy to cultivate a first-line star. Resources and opportunities are indispensable. No one can predict what the future of Jiang Jinfu and Gulinazha will be.
At this moment, the phone rang. Cai Yinong quickly answered it and asked impatiently, "Director Zhang, have the ratings for the first broadcast of Xuan-Yuan Sword come out?"
On the other end of the phone, the director of the Hunan Satellite TV Production Center was beaming with joy: "Boss Cai, great news! The average viewership rating for the first broadcast of Xuan-Yuan Sword was 2.02%, and the national viewership share was close to 11%, ranking first in the country in the same period."
Upon hearing the news, Cai Yinong clenched his fists excitedly: "Thank you Director Zhang, I will increase the publicity efforts here, and I also hope that Hunan Satellite TV will cooperate more with Tangren."
Director Zhang agreed without hesitation: "Don't worry, Mr. Cai, this is a mutually beneficial thing, and the TV station will definitely support it with all its strength!"
(The second update will be later)
(End of this chapter)
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