Liontown Resources has announced that first spodumene concentrate has been produced at Kathleen Valley.
Following progressive commissioning of the process plant, ore has been processed through the entire crushing, milling and flotation circuit, culminating in the production of first concentrate.
The company said the achievement continues its track record of delivering major project milestones on schedule and marks the start of production ramp-up to nameplate throughput of 3Mtpa, currently expected by the end of Q1 CY2025.
With 216,000t of clean ore already mined from the Kathleen’s Corner and Mt Mann open pits, and the primary ore zone in Kathleen’s Corner scheduled to be mined starting in late August, Liontown’s stockpile of clean ore for processing is well-positioned.
The process plant utilises a 100 per cent whole ore flotation flowsheet tailored to orebody characteristics. It was constructed in 18 months and recorded four million work hours.
Liontown will now focus on completing the remaining commissioning activities in the non-critical path areas of the plant, concluding the construction of critical underground infrastructure such as the paste fill plant.
Liontown’s Managing Director and CEO, Tony Ottaviano, said this is a monumental moment for Liontown and marks its transition from a construction project to a producer of high-quality lithium concentrate.
“Two and a half years ago, we set the ambitious goal of achieving first production by mid-2024. Today, we have achieved it.
“To have successfully constructed and commissioned a world-class lithium operation in two and a half years is a testament to the resilience and dedication of our entire team. We will commence delivery of spodumene concentrate to our customers in the coming weeks.
“First production signals the start of our ramp-up towards 3Mtpa capacity and, in partnership with our tier-1 offtake customers, paves the way for us to pursue our long-term strategy to be a globally significant supplier of battery minerals as the world transitions to a low-carbon future.”
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