700 billion Shanshan acquired by Anhui State-owned Assets! Has the "Hefei Model" already won?

Once known as the “Ship King of Jiangsu” and “Richest Man of Liaoning,” Yan Yuanlin, and other industry giants, the once-dreamed-of Shangshan, finally found its “ideal match” before the Chinese New Year of the Year of the Horse. It acquired this Anhui state-owned enterprise, becoming the focus of public attention.

1. Anhui State-Owned Assets Won: Why?

On the evening of February 8, Shangshan Co., Ltd. announced that its controlling shareholder, Shangshan Group, along with its wholly owned subsidiary Ningbo Pengze Trading Co., Ltd., and Shangshan Group management, signed the “Reorganization Investment Agreement” with restructuring investors Anhui Wanyou Group Co., Ltd. (“Wanyou Group”) and Ningbo Financial Asset Management Co., Ltd. (“Ningbo Jinzi”).

According to the agreement, Wanyou Group will acquire up to 21.88% of Shangshan Co.'s voting rights or reach a consensus with related parties through a combination of “direct purchase + immediate contribution + long-term purchase” for a total amount not exceeding 7.156 billion yuan. The agreement also clarifies phased payment and settlement arrangements.

This means that once the restructuring succeeds, Shangshan’s controlling shareholder will change to Wanyou Group, and the actual controller will be the Anhui State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. More importantly, since the death of Shangshan’s founder Zheng Yonggang, the company has been embroiled in family disputes and failed restructuring waves for nearly three years. Now, Shangshan has a chance to be reborn!

I have previously detailed the twists and turns of Shangshan’s restructuring in articles such as “700 Billion Shangshan Exposes Restructuring ‘Interlude’: Original Winning Investor Changes to TCL Industry Investment,” “700 Billion Shangshan ‘Restructuring Draft’ Rejected! Jiangsu ‘Ship King’ Ren Yuanlin’s Dream Falls Short,” etc. For now, I will skip those details.

Back to the main point, although it is a happy event that Shangshan found its “ideal match,” many industry insiders are somewhat puzzled: why Wanyou Group? Or perhaps Helin Group?

According to Anhui Daily, on January 29, A-share listed company Wanyou High-tech announced that Helin Group plans to increase its capital by 4.998 billion yuan to hold 60% of Wanyou Group’s shares, indirectly controlling 18.24% of Wanyou High-tech. After this acquisition, Wanyou Group will remain the controlling shareholder of Wanyou High-tech, and Helin Group will become its indirect controlling shareholder.

This means that the renowned Helin Group now controls Wanyou Group, becoming Shangshan’s actual restructuring entity.

Public information shows that Anhui Helin Group Co., Ltd. was established on September 3, 1996, with approval from the Anhui Provincial Government. Its predecessor, Ningguo Cement Plant, was a key project in China’s “Six-Five” plan. Over 30 years of rapid development, it has grown into an international enterprise group focusing on cement and building materials, with diversified industries.

Currently, Helin Group controls four listed companies: Helin Cement, Helin New Materials, Helin Environmental Protection, and Helin Materials Technology. It has over 620 subsidiaries worldwide, total assets exceeding 300 billion yuan, over 58,000 employees, and has ranked among China’s top 500 enterprises for 21 consecutive years, ranking 193rd in the 2025 China Top 500 Enterprises and 93rd in the 2025 China Manufacturing Top 500.

It sounds like a giant group centered on cement—can it generate synergy with Shangshan’s core industries?

Actually, Helin Group’s move to acquire Shangshan has its subtlety. The operational leadership will be handled by its controlled Wanyou Group, which is a state-owned enterprise with total assets over 10 billion yuan, mainly engaged in chemicals and new materials—industries highly aligned with Shangshan’s main sectors.

Second, compared to Shangshan’s first restructuring plan, this round, Anhui State Assets’ bid is higher, with a more stable structure, and a lock-up period of up to 36 months. Given Shangshan’s turbulent history, does partnering with Anhui State Assets better serve its long-term interests?

Furthermore, strategically, by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan, Helin Group has 197 MWh of user-side energy storage, 2,000 MWh of independent grid-side energy storage projects, and the largest standalone new energy storage station in Inner Mongolia. It also has the largest vanadium redox flow user-side energy storage station in the cement industry. As a leading enterprise in lithium battery materials, Shangshan will likely benefit significantly in the new energy sector.

Moreover, with the backing of Helin Group’s resources and the credit support from Anhui State Assets, future financing conditions will improve markedly, enabling Shangshan to further invest in R&D and innovation, strengthening its competitive moat.

…

The biggest winners in this round of restructuring, besides Anhui State Assets, are Ningbo Jinzi, the local state-owned enterprise where Shangshan is based. The joint restructuring alliance formed by Wanyou Group and Ningbo Jinzi may set a new model for cross-provincial state-owned participation in private enterprise restructuring and takeover—an event of significant importance.

On a deeper level, Anhui State Assets’ bold step reflects another positive exploration of the Hefei model!

2. Hefei Model × Ningbo Speed

The tradition of Hefei, known as a “venture capital city,” rescuing high-quality targets in distress with large investments is well established. Numerous notable cases include:

In 2007, when BOE Technology Group faced difficulties, Hefei allocated one-third of its fiscal revenue (at that time, Hefei’s revenue was only 9 billion yuan, with over 80% invested in BOE). Hefei halted its metro construction project to fund BOE. Today, BOE is the world’s largest LCD panel manufacturer, and Hefei has gained substantial equity returns while establishing a complete display industry chain.

In 2016, Hefei invested over 10 billion yuan to co-found Changxin Storage, focusing on memory chip R&D and manufacturing, helping Hefei achieve a breakthrough in semiconductors from zero to one. Now, Changxin Technology is a leading domestic memory chip company. Hefei continued investing in wafer foundries like Jinghe Integration, forming one of the few cities in China with a complete integrated circuit industry chain.

In 2019, NIO nearly went bankrupt due to cash flow issues. Hefei, along with relevant institutions, invested 7 billion yuan, acquiring a 24% stake. NIO turned around in Hefei, with CEO William Li publicly expressing gratitude to Hefei and Anhui. Hefei’s equity appreciation far exceeded its investment, also boosting the local new energy vehicle industry cluster.

Returning to Helin Group’s 7.156 billion yuan restructuring of Shangshan, this is the second-largest acquisition initiated by Anhui State Assets in the past year, after Huaihe Energy’s billion-yuan purchase. Clearly, this will help cultivate leading enterprises, create cross-regional industrial clusters, and inject new momentum into local high-quality development. The future integration and development prospects are promising.

As for Ningbo, a key port city in Zhejiang, its GDP growth in recent years has been impressive. In 2024 and 2025, it will surpass Tianjin, ranking 11th nationwide, narrowing the gap with Nanjing, Jiangsu. Its economic growth potential is considerable.

So, when the Hefei model meets Ningbo speed, what sparks will fly? We can only look forward with anticipation.

Returning to Shangshan’s performance, on January 31, Shangshan announced its earnings forecast, expecting net profit of 400 million to 600 million yuan in 2025, turning losses into profits compared to the previous year; after excluding non-recurring gains and losses, net profit is estimated at 300 million to 450 million yuan.

The company stated that the turnaround is mainly due to steady growth in core businesses—anode materials and polarizer sales—leading to significant profit improvement. The combined profit from these two sectors is expected to reach 900 million to 1.1 billion yuan.

Additionally, Shangshan’s market position and technological strength are impressive:

As the world’s largest supplier of lithium battery materials, Shangshan’s anode materials have ranked first globally for consecutive years. Its products include artificial graphite, lithium-ion battery anode materials, and cathode materials, serving major clients like Tesla, BYD, and other top automakers and battery giants.

In the field of anode materials, Shangshan holds 334 authorized patents; in polarizer technology, it has 1,243 patents, with over 1,000 new patent applications in 2024, and R&D expenditure reaching 1.037 billion yuan, up nearly 20%, with a R&D intensity of 5.55%.

If the second round of restructuring proceeds smoothly, under the combined efforts of Anhui and Ningbo state assets, how high can Shangshan reach?

Let’s wait and see!

Reference materials:

• 700 Billion Shangshan “Restructuring Draft” Rejected! Jiangsu “Ship King” Ren Yuanlin’s Dream Falls Short? - Internet Stories
• Three Years of Turmoil Ended! Anhui State Assets’ 7.1 Billion Acquisition of Shangshan Co., Ltd. Sparks Cross-Province Mixed Ownership Reform - Manager Magazine
• 700 Billion Shangshan Exposes Restructuring “Interlude”: Original Winning Investor Changes to TCL Industry Investment - Internet Stories
• Shangshan Restructuring Reaches Final Stage: Why Is the “Cement Leader” the Last Laugh? - Huaxia Energy Network
• 7.2 Billion Entry! Anhui State Assets Becomes Shangshan’s Final Restructuring Partner? - Yema Finance
• Anhui State-Owned Enterprise Reform Makes a Big Move Again - China National Radio

Cover image source: AIGC