Liontown Resources has revealed a quarter of growth at its Kathleen Valley lithium project in Western Australia despite a drop in lithium prices.
The company bookmarked the December quarter with the milestone commencement of underground mining at Kathleen Valley.
Open pit mining also progressed to plan, with 1.4 million bulk cubic metres mined by the year’s end.
“The December quarter saw Kathleen Valley enter the peak construction phase and achieve 72 per cent completion by year end,” Liontown managing director Tony Ottaviano said.
“The team has done an outstanding job in seamlessly mobilising to site, commencing six access portals, and achieving 352 total development metres in less than two months.”
Construction of crushing, screening and stockpiling infrastructure also advanced in the dry plant with commissioning targeted to commence early in the second quarter of 2024.
“We have around $515 million in the bank, which will see us through to first production at Kathleen Valley,” Ottaviano said.
Turning to 2024, Ottaviano said the company would be taking a measured approach to expansion in the light of the lithium price slump.
“We have commenced a review to examine the options of deferring the mine expansion from three to four million tonnes per annum until market conditions improve,” he said.
“The decision to undertake a review of the planned expansion and associated ramp-up of Kathleen Valley was based on short- to medium-term lithium price forecasts, which have materially declined in recent months, including an almost 60 per cent drop since October 2023.
“This will allow us to preserve capital and reduce the near-term funding requirements of the project as we seek to finalise a smaller, fit-for-purpose debt facility to see us through to first positive cash flows from Kathleen Valley.”
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