Northern Territory’s first shipment of lithium-bearing ore is being loaded at Darwin Port this week, with the first lithium export for the state coming from Core Lithium’s Finniss Lithium Project.
15,000 dry metric tonnes of direct shipping ore (DSO) are being loaded onto the Rossana ship, an extraordinary effort given construction at the site only began in October 2021.
Northern Territory Chief Minister, Natasha Fyles, said, “This a major milestone not only for Core Lithium, but for the renewable and critical minerals industry.
“Lithium is the way of the future for both cleaner energy and the Territory economy, with local 300 jobs created for at least the next 12 years.”
Once loaded, the ship is bound for Fangcheng, China, where the DSO on board will go on to create lithium batteries used to power electric vehicles and renewable energy storage.
Core has binding offtake agreements with Ganfeng Lithium and Sichuan Yahua to supply 75,000 tonnes per annum of lithium concentrate to each company over four years.
The $89 million dollar Finniss Lithium Project is expected to mine 16 million tonnes of lithium-bearing ore over the life of the mine, which is predicted to be at least 12 years and will employ about 300 people, including contractors.
Mining operations began in October 2022, the first new mine to commence operations in the Northern Territory in more than a decade, with spodumene concentrate production on track for the first half of 2023.
Core Lithium CEO, Gareth Manderson, said, “Core has made good progress during 2022 to transition from a mine developer to lithium producer. In 2023 we will continue this transition and the work required to build a good quality operating business in the Northern Territory.”
