Li
Zimbabwe’s lithium export earnings surge on higher spodumene prices
Zimbabwe recorded lithium export sales worth $2.16 billion during the nine months to September 30, nearly four times the total sales for last year, the government’s minerals marketing agency said on Wednesday.
The increase was mainly due to a 283% increase in the price of spodumene concentrate, a lithium-bearing mineral which is a key source of the battery metal, the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe’s General Manager Nomusa Moyo said during a briefing.
Spodumene concentrate sales accounted for $1.8 billion of total lithium export income, followed by income from petalite, another lithium-bearing mineral, at $155 million.
Zimbabwe also registered $190 million in sales of lithium sulphate, a processed chemical used as an intermediate material in the production of battery-grade lithium compounds.
China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt (SHA: 603799) began exporting lithium sulphate from its Zimbabwe mine in April, after building Africa’s first lithium salt plant for $400 million.
About 33,000 metric tons of lithium sulphate were exported by the end of September, the MMCZ said.
Lithium products have overtaken platinum group metals as Zimbabwe’s biggest mineral exports after gold. PGMs generated $1.73 billion in the nine months to September 30.
Total mineral sales, excluding gold, doubled to $4.74 billion compared to the same period last year.
Most of Zimbabwe’s lithium exports go to China. Chinese firms including Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, Sinomine (SZSE: 002738), Sichuan Yahua (SZSE: 002497), Chengxin Lithium Group (SZSE: 002240) and Tsingshan Holding Group dominate Zimbabwe lithium mining and processing, after investing about $2 billion since 2021.
(Reporting by Nelson Banya; Editing by Andrea Ricci )
Sigma Lithium stock jumps as Brazil court clears Grota mine restart
Sigma Lithium (NASDAQ: SGML) (ASX: SAU) (TSX-V: SGML) shares jumped 5.9% in New York pre-market trading Wednesday after a Brazilian appeals court upheld environmental licences for its flagship Grota do Cirilo lithium mine, clearing the company to resume mining and processing operations.
The federal appeals court overturned an emergency order issued in September that suspended the licences in connection with a lawsuit filed by Ngolo, an association claiming to represent local Quilombola communities.
The court said a prolonged shutdown would cause significant and lasting economic harm in the Vale do Jequitinhonha region of Minas Gerais state.
The decision removes an immediate legal obstacle for Grota do Cirilo, considered among the world’s largest and highest-grade hard-rock lithium deposits, as Sigma works towards an annualized lithium oxide concentrate production rate of 330,000 tonnes by the end of 2027.
Capacity in place
Sigma said it can reach the 2027 target without adding capacity, relying on its existing Mine 1 South Pit operations and Cleantech Industrial Plant.
The plant demonstrated production above 950 tonnes per day following a technological upgrade in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the company. Output topped 1,000 tonnes on several days.
The restart returns attention to Sigma’s ability to ramp up production after the court dispute interrupted operations at its main asset. Achieving the planned increase using existing infrastructure could limit the additional capital required to meet its 2027 guidance.
Sigma shares were last trading at $10.29 before the New York market opened, up from Tuesday’s $9.56 close. The lithium miner had a market value of about $1.52 billion.
Savannah Resources close to second offtake deal for Portugal lithium project
London-listed Savannah Resources (LON: SAV) is close to signing a key second offtake deal for future output from its flagship Barroso lithium project in northern Portugal, with an agreement expected this quarter, CEO Emanuel Proenca said on an analyst call on Wednesday.
The Barroso project hosts more than 39 million tonnes of spodumene resources, Europe’s largest deposit of the lithium-bearing mineral.
The company has said further exploration upside could lift resources above 100 million tonnes and extend the mine’s life beyond 50 years.
Proenca said Savannah was “quite advanced” in negotiations for a second offtake agreement, with a “very final shortlist of candidates, all of them very credible players in the global scene of lithium”, with a deal expected this quarter.
He gave no further details but said a second offtake agreement was a key step towards securing project financing, as lenders want 70%-75% of Barroso’s future output contracted through long-term supply deals.
Dutch miner and lithium supplier AMG Critical Materials (AMS: AMG) signed an offtake agreement in June 2024 to buy 45,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate annually from the Barroso project for five years, equivalent to about 25% of the mine’s planned output.
As part of the deal, AMG Critical Materials became Savannah’s largest shareholder, with a 16% stake.
Savannah estimates construction of the Barroso mine will cost about $420 million. Banks are expected to provide 60%-65% of the funding, with the remainder coming from a Portuguese state grant of up to 110 million euros ($123.09 million), existing cash and new equity.
The project remains on track for construction in 2027 and first production in 2028, Proenca said.
($1 = 0.8937 euros)
(Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
No comments:
Post a Comment