LITHIUM MINES AND MINING – WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Lithium takeover talk ignites Pilbara targets

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 24-Oct-23

Chilean lithium company SQM looks set to acquire Pilbara lithium explorer Azure Minerals, which asked for a halt in trading of its shares on Monday ahead of a "potential change of control transaction". Most assume that SQM is the company being referred to, as it offered in July to pay $2.31 per share for Azure in a deal that valued it at close to $1 billion. It was the second deal involving SQM and the Pilbara on Monday, with SQM to pay Gary Morgan’s Haoma Mining $2.5 million for a stake in lithium exploration company Pirra, which is also looking in the area.

CORPORATES
SOCIEDAD QUIMICA Y MINERA SA, AZURE MINERALS LIMITED – ASX AZS, HAOMA MINING NL, PIRRA LITHIUM PTY LTD

Ellison eyes new lithium prize in WA

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 23-Oct-23

Mineral Resources has declined to comment on reports that it is looking to acquire a stake in Wildcat Resources, citing ‘market speculation’. Wildcat recently completed a deal with Global Advanced Metals to acquire the Tabba Tabba lithium project in the Pilbara. Global Advanced Metals is owned by the private equity firm of Mineral Resources’ chairman James McClements. The Tabba Tabba project is in turn located near the Wodgina lithium mine, which is jointly owned by Mineral Resources and Albemarle.

CORPORATES
MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, WILDCAT RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX WC8, GLOBAL ADVANCED METALS PTY LTD

Liontown shares slump as Rinehart flexes muscle

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 12-Oct-23

Shares in Liontown Resources fell from around $3 to $2.90 during intra-day trade on Wednesday, with the fall coming after Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting announced it had increased its stake in the lithium explorer to 19.9 per cent. With $3 being the price at which battery metals company Albemarle has ‘pitched’ its $6.6 billion takeover offer for Liontown, the fall in its share price was seen as a sign that investors see little chance in its bid succeeding. It may now have to abandon its offer, or work in partnership with Rinehart.

CORPORATES
LIONTOWN RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX LTR,[SPACE]HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD,[SPACE]ALBERMARLE CORPORATION

MINING CORPORATIONS – AUSTRALIA,[SPACE]INSTITUTIONAL INVESTMENTS – AUSTRALIA,[SPACE]MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS – AUSTRALIA]

Rinehart raid shows Liontown’s quality

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 19 : 13-Sep-23

Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting has built up a 7.72 per cent strategic stake in lithium hopeful Liontown Resources. This includes the purchase of almost 60 million shares several days after Liontown’s board endorsed Albemarle’s sweetened takeover off on 4 September. Liontown chairman Tim Goyder says Hancock’s emergence on its share register demonstrates the quality of the Kathleen Valley lithium project in Western Australia. Meanwhile, Mineral Resources MD Chris Ellison has been appointed as the chairman of Delta Lithium; Mineral Resources has a 17.4 per cent stake in Delta.

CORPORATES
LIONTOWN RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX LTR, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, ALBERMARLE CORPORATION, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, DELTA LITHIUM LIMITED – ASX DLI

Billionaire MinRes boss charts a new course for lithium

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 30-Aug-23

Mineral Resources has reported a 2022-23 net profit of $244m, which is 30 per cent lower than previously. The result was marred by a $552m writedown in the value of its iron ore assets. However, revenue rose by 40 per cent to $4.7bn and underlying EBITDA was 71 per cent higher at $1.8bn. MD Chris Ellison says Mineral Resources is looking at bypassing battery manufacturers and chemicals producers to sell lithium directly to car manufacturers. He has also indicated that the company’s Yilgarn iron ore project is likely to reach the end of its mine life within three years.

CORPORATES
MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN

Rio hunts in the outback for new lithium deposits

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Elouise Fowler, Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 12-Jul-23

Rio Tinto has extended a lithium exploration partnership with Everest Metals with regard to the latter’s Rover Project in Western Australia. Everest has advised that Rio Tinto Exploration will commence a drilling program to assess the hard rock lithium reserves at the Rover Project. The Rio Tinto subsidiary struck an initial exploration deal with Everest in March 2021, before taking an 80 per cent stake in the venture in October 2022. WA is the world’s biggest source of hard rock lithium.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, EVEREST METALS CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX EMC

Mineral Resources lifts lithium exposure amid spin-out chatter

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Stuart McKinnon
The West Australian – Page: Online : 16-Sep-22

Shares in Global Lithium Resources rose by 11 per cent to close at $2.93 on 14 September after it was revealed that Mineral Resources had lifted its stake in the company from 5.12 per cent to eight per cent. Global Lithium MD Ron Mitchell said that Mineral Resources’ move up its share register was a "vote of confidence in its Western Australian exploration assets", while speculation regarding the likelihood that Mineral Resources will spin-off its lithium assets via a US listing continues.

CORPORATES
GLOBAL LITHIUM RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GL1, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN

Pilbara Minerals achieves another record lithium price at auction

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Stuart McKinnon
The West Australian – Page: Online : 26-May-22

Pilbara Minerals has advised that a 5,000-tonne cargo of its lithium concentrate has fetched $US5,955 per tonne in auction. The company says this equates to $US6,586 on a cost, insurance, freight price basis. Kaan Peker of RBC Capital Markets says the sale price is 35 per cent above the current spot price in China, and six per cent above the reported weekly Platts index price. The price of lithium has almost doubled since the start of 2022, and Pilbara Minerals MD Ken Brinsden recently forecast that the price will continue to rise.

CORPORATES
PILBARA MINERALS LIMITED – ASX PLS, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, PLATTS

MinRes to keep lithium mine running

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 19 : 21-Nov-19

Mineral Resources has advised that output at its Mount Marion mine in Western Australia is still expected to be within the range of 360,000 to 380,000 tonnes of lithium concentrate in 2019-20, at an average cost of nearly $600 a tonne. CEO Chris Ellison has told the group’s annual meeting that concentrate grading six per cent lithium has fetched around $US600 ($879) per tonne in recent months, after averaging $1,182/tonne in 2018-19. He added that Mineral Resources’ earnings are currently being driven by its iron ore and mining services operations.

CORPORATES
MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, ALBERMARLE CORPORATION, PILBARA MINERALS LIMITED – ASX PLS, ALITA RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX A40, GALAXY RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GXY, ALTURA MINING LIMITED – ASX AJM

Pilbara Minerals cuts exports as lithium delays bite hard

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 18-Jun-19

Pilbara Minerals has advised that production at its Pilgangoora lithium mine in Western Australia will be reduced until at least the end of July, due to delays in the commissioning of battery metals chemical conversion plants in China. Pilbara Minerals is seeking a partner to help finance the second and third stages of its expansion plan for the mine, which is slated to increase annual output to 1.2 million tonnes of spodumene concentrate. The company is also seeking to sell a stake of up to 49 per cent in the mine.

CORPORATES
PILBARA MINERALS LIMITED – ASX PLS, GENERAL LITHIUM CORPORATION, GANFENG LITHIUM COMPANY LIMITED, POSCO