Tag: Lithium WA

Kwinana Industries Council director Chris Oughton. Image: KIC.     BY REUBEN ADAMS   TIANQI'S decision to establish a lithium downstream processing facility at the Kwinana Industrial Area (KIA) was a watershed moment. It not only flagged a new wave of growth for the KIA, it was synonymous with a broader step change for WA’s resources sector – from ‘dig and deliver’ into value-added processing.   The Kwinana Industrial Area  is the heart of the Western Trade Coast (WTC), WA’s premier industrial area which pumps about $15 billion into the State economy each year.  The KIA could see its current $11 billion per annum contribution to the WA economy skyrocket as this push toward secondary processing and battery manufacturing gains...

Image: Tianqi Lithium Australia.   BY ELIZABETH FABRI   WA spodumene producers are moving downstream to cash-in on sky-high lithium hydroxide prices. But is the capital spend on processing infrastructure worth the risk?   2017 was a game-changer for the WA lithium industry. In 2016 there was just a few producing mines in the State; in 2018 this number looks set to explode as investors pour capital into the swarm of lithium mines now at various stages of development. The Neometals and Mineral Resources Mt Marion JV entered production in late 2016, followed shortly by Galaxy Resources’ Mt Cattlin project which exported its first shipment of lithium concentrate in January 2017. Next cabs off the rank are Pilbara Minerals’ and...

Construction activities underway at the Pilgangoora project in early August. All images: Pilbara Minerals. BY ELIZABETH FABRI THE western world “grossly underestimated” the speed at which the lithium ion supply chain has to grow to meet demand, Pilbara Minerals chief executive Ken Brinsden has said. Addressing delegates at last month’s Diggers and Dealers Mining Forum, the man behind the world-class Pilgangoora project has made it his mission to convert those still on the fence about lithium’s long-term future. Lithium ion is set to become the battery of choice as new technologies such as electric vehicles hit the mainstream market. “Lithium ion in essence is the ‘go to’ rechargeable battery,” Mr Brinsden said. “The technology has been developed over 30 years...

All images: Galaxy Resources. By Elizabeth Fabri IF there was one company that best exemplified the lithium boom of the last 12 months, Galaxy Resources would be it. In 2016, its share price rose 330 per cent, making it the highest performing stock of the ASX-200. This year, Galaxy maintains its position in the spotlight as production ramps up at its newly commissioned Mt Cattlin project. The Mt Cattlin mine has been operated by Galaxy Resources since 2009, but was put on care and maintenance in 2013; a huge blow for the nearby Ravensthorpe community with 37 staff and 65 contract redundancies. But after more than three years, times were looking up for the WA mining town with the revival...