Tag: Tianqi Lithium

Kwinana Lithium & Greenbushes: Flowing Downstream

Kwinana Lithium & Greenbushes: Flowing Downstream

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...

Kwinana Lithium expansion on cards

Kwinana Lithium expansion on cards

The $400 million first stage of the Tianqi Lithium Plant project was now under construction. Image: Tianqi Lithium Australia. BY ELIZABETH FABRI CHINESE-owned Tianqi Lithium has agreed to invest $317 million towards an expansion of its Kwinana Lithium Plant in WA, currently under construction. The first stage of the project was due to be complete at the end of 2018, and set to produce up to 24,000 tonnes of battery grade lithium hydroxide per annum. A second phase would double plant capacity to 48,000 tonnes per annum, and be built adjacent to the first plant, with a construction period of less than two years. Tianqi Lithium Australia managing director Phil Thick said the company was pleased to be moving to...

Greenbushes to double production

Greenbushes to double production

Image: Greenbushes. By Cameron Drummond US lithium producer Albemarle has approved the expansion of lithium concentrate production at its Greenbushes spodumene mine in WA. Greenbushes is currently the world's largest active lithium mine, owned in a 50:50 joint venture between Albemarle and Chinese producer Tianqi Lithium. The proposed expansion is intended to more than double the lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) capacity at Greenbushes from its current 80,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) output to more than 160,000tpa. “This project is integral to our announced lithium expansion plans so that we can meet the growing needs of our customers,” Albemarle Lithium and Advanced Material president John Mitchell said. “The expansion of the mine and ore upgrading facilities is a key deliverable in...