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majors round on Western Australia as SQM makes hard rock foray","lithium-majors-round-on-western-australia-as-sqm-makes-hard-rock-foray","article/lithium-majors-round-on-western-australia-as-sqm-makes-hard-rock-foray",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":563,"content":573,"excerpt":729,"featured":50,"reporter":730,"_editable":734,"component":735,"seo_title":553,"categories":736,"visibility":745,"author_company":49,"featured_image":746,"seo_description":729,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":751,"formattedArticleDate":752},"be2be22e-731d-4d5c-83bc-6ea80318e784","2017-07-26 00:00",[560],{"slug":561,"name":562},"australia","Australia",[564],{"slug":565,"name":566,"content":567},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":568,"image":569,"bio":571,"linkedin":572},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":570},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":574,"content":575},"doc",[576,583,588,593,598,603,606,611,616,621,626,631,636,639,644,649,654,659,664,669,674,679,684,689,694,706,711,720],{"type":577,"attrs":578,"content":579},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[580],{"text":581,"type":582},"Simon Moores / @sdmoores","text",{"type":577,"attrs":584,"content":585},{"textAlign":49},[586],{"text":587,"type":582},"SQM SA’s evolution from a fertiliser chemicals company to a lithium focused group has taken a major step forward after the Chilean brine producer agreed to invest $110m into Australian spodumene developer, Kidman Resources.",{"type":577,"attrs":589,"content":590},{"textAlign":49},[591],{"text":592,"type":582},"The world’s leading lithium brine producer has decided to make its first foray into hard rock production joining Talison Lithium’s dominant Greenbushes mine, Galaxy Resources’ Mt Cattlin operation and Mineral Resources and Neometals’ Mt Marion project.",{"type":577,"attrs":594,"content":595},{"textAlign":49},[596],{"text":597,"type":582},"The deal will establish a 50:50 joint-venture (J-V) to build a spodumene operation at Kidman’s Earl Grey lithium deposit, part of its Mt Holland Project, located near located near Southern Cross, in Western Australia (WA).",{"type":577,"attrs":599,"content":600},{"textAlign":49},[601],{"text":602,"type":582},"It includes an upfront cash payment by SQM of $30m and a staged payment of $80m which gives the group one of the few spodumene deposits in Australia with long life and large-scale potential. It adds to SQM’s world class lithium asset base with the operating Salar de Atacama in Chile and Cauchari-Olaroz in Argentina, a J-V with Lithium Americas which is under three years from beginning production.",{"type":577,"attrs":604,"content":605},{"textAlign":49},[],{"type":577,"attrs":607,"content":608},{"textAlign":49},[609],{"text":610,"type":582},"The agreement also outlines loose future plans for a carbonate and hydroxide chemical conversion plant of which Kidman will have a 50% option.",{"type":577,"attrs":612,"content":613},{"textAlign":49},[614],{"text":615,"type":582},"Rumours were circulating that the hard rock deal was on the cards prior to its official announcement on 12 July 2017, however SQM were no doubt waiting for resolution to the court case between Kidman and Marindi Metals Ltd over the mineral rights for Mt Holland.",{"type":577,"attrs":617,"content":618},{"textAlign":49},[619],{"text":620,"type":582},"Kidman, a gold mining company, fell into one of the biggest spodumene reserves in Australia through chance more than design and was focused on the gold rights to the Mt Holland property. Discussions and an “agreement to agree” to give Marindi all other mineral development rights to the property, including the lithium, took place while at the same time global interest in lithium was rising.",{"type":577,"attrs":622,"content":623},{"textAlign":49},[624],{"text":625,"type":582},"The case was settled in favour of Kidman with the Supreme Court of Western Australia stating that a draft agreement with Marindi was never executed giving SQM the green light to proceed with its deal.",{"type":577,"attrs":627,"content":628},{"textAlign":49},[629],{"text":630,"type":582},"“This is a new step… to maintain our position as a low-cost producer in all our major business lines, including the growing lithium business,” SQM’s CEO, Patricio de Solminihac explained.",{"type":577,"attrs":632,"content":633},{"textAlign":49},[634],{"text":635,"type":582},"“The project characteristics, coupled with our expertise in lithium production and the lithium market, will make this project a great addition to our production portfolio,” he added.",{"type":577,"attrs":637,"content":638},{"textAlign":49},[],{"type":577,"attrs":640,"content":641},{"textAlign":49},[642],{"text":643,"type":582},"The move makes SQM the third biggest spender of the present-day lithium boom which has seen lithium carbonate and hydroxide prices rise and hold at 3-4 times the original value in October 2015. It brings the Chilean producer’s total commitments so far to $135m after its $25m investment in Lithium Americas in March 2016.",{"type":577,"attrs":645,"content":646},{"textAlign":49},[647],{"text":648,"type":582},"However, SQM is still some way behind its China-based chemical conversion competitors, Ganfeng Lithium, which has committed $172m into Lithium Americas and more recently in Q2 2017 $20m into Australian hard rock developer, Pilbara Minerals.",{"type":577,"attrs":650,"content":651},{"textAlign":49},[652],{"text":653,"type":582},"Pilbara Minerals has seen a rapid rise from inception to green lighting construction plans. Its deal with Ganfeng Lithium not only sees the cash investment but also an offtake agreement of 160,000 tonnes of chemical grade 6% lithium containing spodumene concentrate. The company began developing its Pilgangoora lithium project in a major way in early 2016.",{"type":577,"attrs":655,"content":656},{"textAlign":49},[657],{"text":658,"type":582},"Canada’s Nemaska Lithium raised $50m in June for its Whabouchi mine and lithium hydroxide plant in Quebec. The deal was underwritten by National Bank Financial Inc., Echelon Wealth Partners Inc., Cormark Securities Inc. and Eight Capital.",{"type":577,"attrs":660,"content":661},{"textAlign":49},[662],{"text":663,"type":582},"Sichuan Tianqi, a leading China-based chemicals convertor and majority owner of the world’s biggest spodumene producer, Talison Lithium, is also ready to double its spend and double the capacity of Australia’s first lithium hydroxide conversion plant in Kwinana, WA, which is under construction.",{"type":577,"attrs":665,"content":666},{"textAlign":49},[667],{"text":668,"type":582},"Tianqi Lithium Australia has been established as the subsidiary for the 24,000 tpa Kwinana Lithium Hydroxide Processing Plant which is expected to be up and running in 2019. However, any second phase construction of the plant, which is under a feasibility study until October 2017, would take its battery grade hydroxide capacity to 48,000 tpa and the Tianqi group’s total commitment to A$717m ($561m) by end-2021.",{"type":577,"attrs":670,"content":671},{"textAlign":49},[672],{"text":673,"type":582},"Curiously, Chile – the leading producer of lithium through SQM and Albemarle – is yet to see any significant investment dollars for new lithium operations despite the government’s best efforts to attract new competition to the Salar de Atacama. Meanwhile, Argentina’s pro-business stance has buoyed lithium investment into the country.",{"type":577,"attrs":675,"content":676},{"textAlign":49},[677],{"text":678,"type":582},"Of the three new lithium mines that have entered into production over the last 7 years, since lithium’s first boom of 2010, two are spodumene operations in WA (Galaxy Resources Mt Cattlin and Mineral Resources/Neometals’ Mt Marion) and one is a brine project in Argentina (Orocobre).",{"type":577,"attrs":680,"content":681},{"textAlign":49},[682],{"text":683,"type":582},"With investment of the top two Chinese lithium chemical convertors together with SQM’s new hard rock lithium commitment, WA is fast becoming a global hub for new lithium production.",{"type":577,"attrs":685,"content":686},{"textAlign":49},[687],{"text":688,"type":582},"One interesting point about the potential for lithium mining in WA is that all present and future  spodumene operations will export out of different ports across the state.",{"type":577,"attrs":690,"content":691},{"textAlign":49},[692],{"text":693,"type":582},"Galaxy Resources exports its Mt Cattlin concentrate out of Esperance Port, Mt Marion is shipping out of Kwinana, the ore mined by Mineral Resources at the Wodgina operation is using Port Headland and Talison Lithium exports Greenbushes’ concentrate from Bunbury port.",{"type":577,"attrs":695,"content":696},{"textAlign":49},[697,699,704],{"text":698,"type":582},"While the mining industry is familiar with ",{"text":700,"type":582,"marks":701},"provinces ",[702],{"type":703},"italic",{"text":705,"type":582},"or hotspots of mineral production such as iron ore in the Pilbara region or gold in Kalgoorlie, world class spodumene deposits do not appear to cluster in such close proximity.",{"type":577,"attrs":707,"content":708},{"textAlign":49},[709],{"text":710,"type":582},"This not only points to WA’s rich lithium-bearing geology but the fact that lithium is not rare and that it is investment into the chemical processing step in the supply chain that has been lacking.",{"type":577,"attrs":712,"content":713},{"textAlign":49},[714,716,718],{"text":715,"type":582},"With lithium carbonate prices now holding above $12,000/tonne and lithium hydroxide prices in the $16,000/tonne region, according to ",{"text":717,"type":582},"Benchmark Mineral Intelligence",{"text":719,"type":582}," data, many projects that were deemed non-economic back in 2009 are now enjoying the limelight.",{"type":577,"attrs":721,"content":722},{"textAlign":49},[723,725,727],{"text":724,"type":582},"With lithium demand pressure increasing on a daily basis, particularly with aggressive electric vehicle targets from major auto manufacturers, it is ",{"text":726,"type":582},"Benchmark",{"text":728,"type":582},"’s expectation that higher prices will persist for at least another three years and that no lithium price crash, which some commodity analysts expect, is in sight.","Simon Moores / @sdmoores SQM SA’s evolution from a fertiliser chemicals company to a lithium focused group has taken a major step forward after the Chilean brine producer agreed to invest $110m into Australian spodumene developer, Kidman Resources. The world’s leading lithium brine producer has decided to make its first foray into hard rock production […]",[731],{"slug":565,"name":566,"content":732},{"job_title":568,"image":733,"bio":571,"linkedin":572},{"filename":570},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"be2be22e-731d-4d5c-83bc-6ea80318e784\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[737,740,743],{"slug":738,"name":739},"batteries","Batteries",{"slug":741,"name":742},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals",{"slug":744,"name":8},"lithium","private",{"id":49,"alt":747,"name":747,"focus":747,"title":747,"source":747,"filename":748,"copyright":747,"fieldtype":749,"meta_data":750,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/9b906b5bf5/bm-screen-shot-2017-07-26-at-145617.png","asset",{"alt":747,"title":747,"source":747,"copyright":747},"Jul 26, 2017","26th July 2017",[],[],1792773945609]