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Mid-Nickel",103.5,99.73,3.78,13.78,6.78,[518,519,520,522,524,526,528,530,532,534,536,538],{"date":213,"value":512},{"date":216,"value":513},{"date":219,"value":521},99.19,{"date":222,"value":523},96.02,{"date":225,"value":525},98.23,{"date":467,"value":527},99.24,{"date":329,"value":529},101.29,{"date":339,"value":531},87.61,{"date":341,"value":533},92.44,{"date":344,"value":535},90.96,{"date":347,"value":537},92.24,{"date":350,"value":539},95.09,{"id":541,"uuid":542,"name":543,"slug":544,"full_slug":545,"content":546,"relatedArticles":698,"relatedVideos":699},112470182762202,"b59ba6a2-673d-4fb1-9938-521ba08d8df7","Miners under pressure as spodumene price falls below $1,000 a tonne","miners-under-pressure-as-spodumene-price-falls-below-1000-a-tonne","article/miners-under-pressure-as-spodumene-price-falls-below-1000-a-tonne",{"_uid":547,"date":548,"tags":549,"editor":556,"content":566,"excerpt":680,"featured":51,"reporter":681,"_editable":685,"component":686,"seo_title":543,"categories":687,"visibility":690,"author_company":49,"featured_image":691,"seo_description":680,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":696,"formattedArticleDate":697},"861ac14d-3c4b-41ba-bae0-7a9c5b69d42a","2024-01-12 00:00",[550,553],{"slug":551,"name":552},"lithium-prices","Lithium prices",{"slug":554,"name":555},"spodumene","Spodumene",[557],{"slug":558,"name":559,"content":560},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":561,"image":562,"bio":564,"linkedin":565},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":563},"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":567,"content":568},"doc",[569,586,591,600,605,610,617,622,627,632,637,642,647,652,657,662,675],{"type":570,"attrs":571,"content":572},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[573,576,584],{"text":574,"type":575},"Spodumene prices dipped below $1,000 a tonne for the first time since August 2021 this month, according to ","text",{"text":577,"type":575,"marks":578},"Benchmark’s Lithium Price Assessment",[579],{"type":580,"attrs":581},"link",{"href":582,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":583},"https://www.benchmarkminerals.com/price-assessments/lithium/portal/?tab=table","url",{"text":585,"type":575},", tracking steep declines in prices for lithium chemicals.",{"type":570,"attrs":587,"content":588},{"textAlign":49},[589],{"text":590,"type":575},"Spodumene FOB Australia was down by 84% year-on-year to an average of $955 a tonne on 10 January 2024. This represented a 27% drop since 27 December 2023, marking the third biggest fortnightly decline in the chemical feedstock over the last year.",{"type":570,"attrs":592,"content":593},{"textAlign":49},[594],{"type":595,"attrs":596},"image",{"id":49,"alt":597,"src":598,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":599},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/dc7d7ef1a1/bm-screenshot-2024-01-12-103032.png",{},{"type":570,"attrs":601,"content":602},{"textAlign":49},[603],{"text":604,"type":575},"The low prices led Australia’s Core Lithium to announce in early January 2024 that it would temporarily suspend mining operations at its Finniss lithium project in the Northern Territory until market conditions improve.",{"type":570,"attrs":606,"content":607},{"textAlign":49},[608],{"text":609,"type":575},"“If this low price environment persists, we would expect more producers to begin to slow down or pause production, especially those higher up on the cost curve,” commented Benchmark analyst Adam Meggingson. ",{"type":611,"attrs":612,"content":614},"heading",{"level":613,"textAlign":49},4,[615],{"text":616,"type":575},"Spodumene becomes more reactive to chemicals prices",{"type":570,"attrs":618,"content":619},{"textAlign":49},[620],{"text":621,"type":575},"Spodumene has fallen in lagged response to declines in lithium hydroxide and carbonate prices over the past year as pricing contracts for the feedstock reference CIF Asia lithium chemicals prices.",{"type":570,"attrs":623,"content":624},{"textAlign":49},[625],{"text":626,"type":575},"CIF Asia lithium carbonate and hydroxide were down 80.6% and 81.6% year-on-year on 10 January, respectively, with both chemicals hitting $15,125 per tonne, according to Benchmark’s latest Lithium Price Assessment.",{"type":570,"attrs":628,"content":629},{"textAlign":49},[630],{"text":631,"type":575},"“As CIF Asia chemicals prices continue to decline, we would expect spodumene prices to continue to decline in a lagged response,” said Benchmark analyst Adam Megginson.",{"type":570,"attrs":633,"content":634},{"textAlign":49},[635],{"text":636,"type":575},"In recent months, spodumene prices have become more responsive to changes in chemicals pricing due to changes in pricing mechanisms.",{"type":570,"attrs":638,"content":639},{"textAlign":49},[640],{"text":641,"type":575},"Formerly, most spodumene contract prices were determined at point of sale, with reference to CIF Asia chemical prices from the previous quarter.",{"type":570,"attrs":643,"content":644},{"textAlign":49},[645],{"text":646,"type":575},"Since mid 2023, more sellers have been negotiating for so-called ‘M+1’ pricing contracts. These are determined by chemical prices on the day that material is delivered. A growing proportion of these contracts in the market has narrowed the delay between changes in chemicals prices and the response in spodumene prices",{"type":611,"attrs":648,"content":649},{"level":613,"textAlign":49},[650],{"text":651,"type":575},"The lithium backlog",{"type":570,"attrs":653,"content":654},{"textAlign":49},[655],{"text":656,"type":575},"Core Lithium plans to continue processing its existing 280,000 tonnes of stockpiled ore during its mining suspension. It expects this stock to be sufficient to feed the concentrator until mid-2024. ",{"type":570,"attrs":658,"content":659},{"textAlign":49},[660],{"text":661,"type":575},"Core Lithium opened its Finniss mine in October 2022, when spodumene prices were over $5,000 a tonne. It has offtake agreements with Ganfeng Lithium and Sichuan Yahua, both Chinese lithium chemicals producers.",{"type":570,"attrs":663,"content":664},{"textAlign":49},[665,667,673],{"text":666,"type":575},"Lithium feedstock supply is estimated to have increased by 24% in 2023 compared with 2022, according to Benchmark’s ",{"text":668,"type":575,"marks":669},"Lithium Forecast Report",[670],{"type":580,"attrs":671},{"href":672,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":583},"https://www.benchmarkminerals.com/forecasts/lithium/reports/",{"text":674,"type":575},", driven by increased output from Australia’s biggest lithium mines – Greenbushes, Mount Marion, and Wodgina.",{"type":570,"attrs":676,"content":677},{"textAlign":49},[678],{"text":679,"type":575},"This feedstock increase coincided with a year of slowed demand growth for EV batteries in the Chinese market where much of Australia’s spodumene is sold for processing.","Spodumene prices dipped below $1,000 a tonne for the first time since August 2021 this month, according to Benchmark’s Lithium Price Assessment, tracking steep declines in prices for lithium chemicals. Spodumene FOB Australia was down by 84% year-on-year to an average of $955 a tonne on 10 January 2024. This represented a 27% drop since […]",[682],{"slug":558,"name":559,"content":683},{"job_title":561,"image":684,"bio":564,"linkedin":565},{"filename":563},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"861ac14d-3c4b-41ba-bae0-7a9c5b69d42a\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[688],{"slug":689,"name":8},"lithium","private",{"id":49,"alt":692,"name":597,"focus":597,"title":692,"source":597,"filename":693,"copyright":597,"fieldtype":694,"meta_data":695,"is_external_url":51},"Large yellow truck used in modern lithium mine in Western Australia. A truck transports ore from the open cast mine.","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/d118c61996/bm-shutterstock-133473047.jpg","asset",{"alt":692,"title":692,"source":597,"copyright":597},"Jan 12, 2024","12th January 2024",[],[],1782315323934]