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hard rock hypothesis: Tianqi reportedly considering Greenbushes sale","lithiums-hard-rock-hypothesis-tianqi-reportedly-considering-greenbushes-sale","article/lithiums-hard-rock-hypothesis-tianqi-reportedly-considering-greenbushes-sale",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":566,"content":576,"excerpt":666,"featured":50,"reporter":667,"_editable":671,"component":672,"seo_title":553,"categories":673,"visibility":677,"author_company":49,"featured_image":678,"seo_description":666,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":683,"formattedArticleDate":684},"49b85880-c0f0-4a7c-b9ac-3b0b4bb361ed","2020-04-20 00:00",[560,563],{"slug":561,"name":562},"australia","Australia",{"slug":564,"name":565},"china","China",[567],{"slug":568,"name":569,"content":570},"matthew-bird","Matthew Bird",{"job_title":571,"image":572,"bio":574,"linkedin":575},"Senior Editor - Supply Chains & Data Visualisation",{"filename":573},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/14738033ec/matthew-bird.jpeg","Matthew writes, edits and produces content for Benchmark Intelligence and Benchmark Source across the whole mine to grid supply chain. He also acts as a liaison to the press. He has a PhD in electrochemistry from the University of Nottingham.","https://www.linkedin.com/in/birdmatthew/",{"type":577,"content":578},"doc",[579,586,591,596,601,606,611,616,621,628,633,640,647,654,661],{"type":580,"attrs":581,"content":582},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[583],{"text":584,"type":585},"Expansions through the 2010s have seen Tianqi emerge as one of the world’s leading lithium producers, sitting alongside lithium’s top producers such Albemarle, SQM and Ganfeng Lithium. However, the company is now under significant financial pressure, which have forced the company to consider asset and equity sales.","text",{"type":580,"attrs":587,"content":588},{"textAlign":49},[589],{"text":590,"type":585},"The Australian Financial Review reported that China’s Tianqi Lithium is looking to sell part of its majority 51% holding in the Greenbushes hard rock lithium mine, Western Australia. Following these reports Tianqi then confirmed that it was considering selling equity and assets but that no agreements had yet been signed.",{"type":580,"attrs":592,"content":593},{"textAlign":49},[594],{"text":595,"type":585},"The Greenbushes operation is the world’s largest lithium mine, having produced over 90,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in 2019 according to data from Benchmark Minerals Lithium Forecast which represented 25% of global supply. The remaining 49% of the project —held through the joint venture Talison Lithium— is held by Albemarle. The fact that Tianqi is considering the sale of at least a share in this leading lithium asset illustrates the pressures the company is under.",{"type":580,"attrs":597,"content":598},{"textAlign":49},[599],{"text":600,"type":585},"Tianqi has been flying too close to the sun with its expansions of recent years in attempts to gain market share, such as the purchase of a 23.8% stake in Chilean lithium producer SQM for $4.1 billion in 2018. These expansions have placed the company under considerable financial strain.",{"type":580,"attrs":602,"content":603},{"textAlign":49},[604],{"text":605,"type":585},"As part of its expansions, Tianqi had also been developing the Kwinana lithium hydroxide facility with a 24,000 tonne per annum capacity in Australia. Using feedstock from the Greenbushes mine, Kwinana was due to begin production in H1 and ramp up to capacity within 12 months. However, in March 2020 Tianqi announced that it had postponed commissioning the first stage of the plant, citing issues as a consequence of the coronavirus outbreak.",{"type":580,"attrs":607,"content":608},{"textAlign":49},[609],{"text":610,"type":585},"Fast forward a month and Tianqi’s financial difficulties —which had of course been building regardless of the coronavirus — have forced the company into considering asset and equity sales. It has also been reported that Tianqi is now looking to sell the Kwinana plant.",{"type":580,"attrs":612,"content":613},{"textAlign":49},[614],{"text":615,"type":585},"The market conditions for lithium produces have been difficult and Tianqi is not the only struggling producer. Benchmark Minerals’ Lithium Forecast shows that a backlog of material at the end of 2019 saw 25,000-50,000 tonnes LCE of excess material carried over into 2020. Under these backlog pressures we have seen a host of expansion delays and output cuts from hard rock producers as spodumene prices have continued to fall. While Tianqi is not alone in its struggles, the attempts to expand its Australian interests and Chilean interests, the company’s financial difficulties are now taking their toll",{"type":580,"attrs":617,"content":618},{"textAlign":49},[619],{"text":620,"type":585},"George Miller, Analyst, said of the latest developments: “Tianqi has faced financial difficulty following its purchase of a $4.1bn, 24% share in Chilean miner SQM, completed near the last peak in the market in 2018. Since then, Tianqi has endured a high debt burden and faced increased exposure to the market during a decline in lithium pricing. Despite technical issues at their Kwinana hydroxide plant, likely to be included within a deal, Tianqi will have multiple interested parties in their stake in Talison, as Greenbushes remains one of the largest and lowest cost lithium assets globally.”",{"type":622,"attrs":623,"content":625},"heading",{"level":624,"textAlign":49},4,[626],{"text":627,"type":585},"Tianqi’s potential suitors",{"type":580,"attrs":629,"content":630},{"textAlign":49},[631],{"text":632,"type":585},"As the world’s largest producing lithium asset there are likely to be a number of interested parties interested in Greenbushes. A number of potential suitors have been suggested. Who could we expect to purchase Tianqi’s share of the Greenbushes?",{"type":580,"attrs":634,"content":635},{"textAlign":49},[636,638],{"text":637,"type":585},"Albemarle ",{"text":639,"type":585},"is the leading contender to purchase part of Tianqi’s share in Greenbushes. Not only does the company already hold a 49% share in the mine, it is one of the world’s leading producers of lithium brine. Benchmark Minerals’ Q1 2020 Lithium Forecast shows that Albemarle produced 35,200 tonnes LCE in its Chilean brine operation and a further 3,000 tonnes LCE from its Silver Peak – which is currently the only lithium producing asset in the USA. The company also holds a 60% share in Australia’s hard rock Wodgina mine alongside Mineral Resources.",{"type":580,"attrs":641,"content":642},{"textAlign":49},[643,645],{"text":644,"type":585},"Wesfarmers ",{"text":646,"type":585},"is a relative newcomer to the lithium scene, having completed a AUS$1.5billion deal to acquire hard rock Australian lithium developer Kidman Resources in September 2019. The deal saw Wesfarmers take on Kidman’s 50:50 stake in the Mt Holland, which is jointly held by SQM. Data from Benchmark Minerals’ Q1 2020 Lithium Forecast shows that the Mt Holland project is expected to begin production in 2022 and ramping up to 40,000 tonnes of production in 2025. Tianqi’s sale would offer Wesfarmers the opportunity to take on an asset already in production.",{"type":580,"attrs":648,"content":649},{"textAlign":49},[650,652],{"text":651,"type":585},"Mineral Resources ",{"text":653,"type":585},"is one of the other incumbent Australian hard rock lithium producers that might be interested in Greenbushes. The company holds a minority share, alongside majority shareholder Ganfeng Lithium, in the Mt Marion mine, which produced 36,800 tonnes LCE in 2019 according to data from Benchmark Minerals Lithium Forecast. As mentioned above, Mineral Resources also has a 40% share in Wodgina alongside Albemarle.",{"type":580,"attrs":655,"content":656},{"textAlign":49},[657,659],{"text":658,"type":585},"Rio Tinto ",{"text":660,"type":585},"already has two development stage lithium assets: its Boron mine in the USA and Jadar project in Serbia. However, these projects represent small operations with future potential. With Tianqi’s share of the world’s biggest lithium mine up for grabs, this may represent an opportunity for Rio Tinto to fully commit to its lithium foray, or possibly for another major commodity group move into lithium",{"type":580,"attrs":662,"content":663},{"textAlign":49},[664],{"text":665,"type":585},"While the above companies represent industry participants, the sale of Tianqi’s share of Greenbushes could provide industry outsiders with the opportunity to take a share in one of the world’s leading lithium producing assets.","Expansions through the 2010s have seen Tianqi emerge as one of the world’s leading lithium producers, sitting alongside lithium’s top producers such Albemarle, SQM and Ganfeng Lithium. However, the company is now under significant financial pressure, which have forced the company to consider asset and equity sales. The Australian Financial Review reported that China’s Tianqi […]",[668],{"slug":568,"name":569,"content":669},{"job_title":571,"image":670,"bio":574,"linkedin":575},{"filename":573},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"49b85880-c0f0-4a7c-b9ac-3b0b4bb361ed\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[674],{"slug":675,"name":676},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals","private",{"id":49,"alt":679,"name":679,"focus":679,"title":679,"source":679,"filename":680,"copyright":679,"fieldtype":681,"meta_data":682,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/0adcd12239/bm-greenbushes-e1655831404108.jpg","asset",{"alt":679,"title":679,"source":679,"copyright":679},"Apr 20, 2020","20th April 2020",[],[],1789748877110]