Australia's MinRes pulls back Li output with downturn
Australian lithium and iron ore producer Mineral Resources (MinRes) will pull back on lithium production at its Mount Marion and Wodgina sites with the current downturn.
"I'm starving the product going in[to] the market," said MinRes managing director Chris Ellison on 29 August. "I don't want to oversupply the market. I don't want to waste my ore."
MinRes issued its July 2024-June 2025 fiscal year lithium shipment guidance on 6pc-grade spodumene grade basis for Mount Marion at 150,000-170,000 dry metric tonnes (dmt), down from the previous year's 190,000-220,000dmt, according to its latest full-year results presentation. Wodgina's guidance was 210,000-230,000dmt, down from the previous year's 210,000-240,000dmt. Its newer Bald Hill site, which was not issued a guidance, aims to ship 120,000-145,000dmt.
"We've got used to higher prices. We've put a lot more gear in there and got greedier and tried to get more product. We're paying attention to that," said Ellison. But MinRes has no plans to shut the mines down. But it will spend "as little" as it can on the mines while conserving cash. MinRes' revenues for 2023-24 rose by 10pc against a year earlier to around A$5.3bn ($3.6bn), partly supported by higher iron ore revenues but offset by the weaker lithium prices.
"We're in a tough market. We're in one of those downturns [but] it's nothing we need to panic about," added Ellison. He forecast lithium prices to likely remain depressed for "six months or so" before rebounding early next year. But has warned that if it does not, plenty of lithium operations are going to be "turned off".
Argus-assessed prices for 6pc grade lithium concentrate (spodumene) held stable from a week earlier at $770-840/t cif China on 27 August, while prices for 99.5pc grade lithium carbonate ex-works China hit their lowest level since early 2021 and are currently at Yn73,000-78,000/t ex-works.
MinRes will also not delve into downstream processing of lithium in his times, stressed Ellison in a sharp contrast with its rival Pilbara Minerals, stating those yield "marginal returns". MinRes earlier in June ended a transitional third-party processing agreement with US-based lithium producer Albemarle for the conversion of its Wodgina spodumene into lithium hydroxide.
Related news posts
US OCTG, line pipe imports fall in July
US OCTG, line pipe imports fall in July
Houston, 29 August (Argus) — Preliminary data from the US Department of Commerce shows that imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe products fell in July. OCTG volumes fell by 88,100 metric tonnes (t) from the prior year, as volumes from Japan dropped by 15,500t, South Korea and Thailand both dropped by 13,500t, and volumes from Vietnam and Mexico fell by 11,300t and 9,300t, respectively. Volumes of line pipe less than or equal to 16in fell by 12,300t, as Italian volumes dropped by 4,500t, Ukraine dropped to zero from 4,400t in the prior year, and Brazilian volumes fell by 3,100t. Standard pipe imports increased by 13,400t on a 7,900t increase from Turkey. Heavy structural shape volumes jumped by 39,700t as Spanish volumes increased by 21,700t from the prior year, and imports from Germany rose by 9,200t. By Rye Druzchetta US pipe and tube imports metric tonnes Product Jul-24 Jul-23 Volume change ±% Jun-24 OCTG 95,792 183,909 -88,117 -47.9% 126,760 Line pipe 69,387 80,875 -11,488 -14.2% 87,976 Standard 66,100 52,716 13,384 25.4% 76,317 Heavy Structural Shapes 107,979 68,253 39,726 58.2% 54,096 US Department of Commerce July 2024 data is preliminary data, which is subject to change. Line pipe is all diameters. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Higher flats volumes lead US steel imports up
Higher flats volumes lead US steel imports up
Houston, 29 August (Argus) — Higher volumes of flat steel imports led overall US steel imports higher in July. Total US steel imports for consumption were 2.2mn metric tonnes (t) in July, according to preliminary data from the US Department of Commerce. Hot-rolled coil (HRC) imports rose by 22,600t from the prior year, driven by a 32,900t jump in Japanese volumes, which were offset slightly by a 9,200t drop from Canada. Cold-rolled coil (CRC) volumes were up by 37,000t in July, with Canada exporting 8,800t more than the prior year. Hot-dipped galvanized (HDG) coil imports from Brazil jumped by 17,200t from the prior year, while volumes from Mexico rose by 13,000t. Volumes of blooms, billets and slabs dropped by 121,900t, as Mexico's volumes dropped to zero from 95,800t in the prior year. By Rye Druzchetta US steel imports metric tonnes Product Jul-24 Jul-23 Volume change ±% Jun-24 HRC 156,952 134,326 22,626 16.8% 156,861 CRC 172,746 135,778 36,968 27.2% 113,400 HDG 233,511 165,607 67,904 41.0% 238,809 Blooms, billets, slabs 364,138 486,053 -121,915 -25.1% 395,478 Total (all items)* 2,197,347 2,153,126 44,221 2.1% 1,955,800 US Department of Commerce July 2024 data is preliminary data, which is subject to change. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
ThyssenKrupp Steel executives leave as tensions rise
ThyssenKrupp Steel executives leave as tensions rise
London, 29 August (Argus) — Seven board and supervisory board members of ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe have left their positions given deepening strife with the chief executive of parent company ThyssenKrupp. There has been an ongoing dispute between ThyssenKrupp chief executive Miguel Lopez and board members of ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe, including the latter's chief executive Bernhard Osburg, for some months now over the future of the business. Osburg and two other board members from Steel Europe have now stepped down, as has the chairman of the Steel Europe supervisory board Sigmar Gabriel and three other supervisory board members. The members have "lost all confidence in the will and ability of the chairman of the executive board of ThyssenKrupp AG to co-operate appropriately", Gabriel said in a note after a meeting today. He said Lopez has carried out an "unprecedented" and public campaign against the executive board of Steel Europe, damaging its ability to act and breaching trust. The Steel Europe board had proposed a plan to align the business' production to its recent shipments, meaning a decline from about 12mn t/yr to 9mn t/yr, and to exit from steelmaker HKM's joint venture with Salzgitter and Vallourec. HKM is viewed as a high-cost slab producer. However, Lopez felt the plans did not go far enough to restructure the business, calling for a deeper reorganisation and reduction in headcount. A spokesperson for union IG Metall said it "strongly" supports Osburg and the outgoing chairman, and criticises the actions of Lopez. The union is not legally allowed to call for strike action, but has called for protests over the departures. One executive said the dispute could threaten the future of Steel Europe as an entity. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
India's Sail starts trialling biochar for steelmaking
India's Sail starts trialling biochar for steelmaking
Mumbai, 29 August (Argus) — India's state-controlled Steel Authority of India (Sail) has started using biochar for steelmaking at its plant in Odisha state to bring down carbon emissions. Sail carried out a trial injection of biochar in blast furnace (BF) 1 of its Rourkela Steel Plant on 24 August, the steelmaker said. Biochar — produced by thermally decomposing biomass derived from plants and animals — can partially replace pulverised coal injection in BFs, Sail said. The company did not provide any specific timelines. Steelmakers in India are largely reliant on traditional BF technology, which uses coal as a reducing agent to produce iron and releases vast amounts of carbon in the process. Coal-based BFs account for 73pc of India's total operating iron-making capacity, according to data from Global Energy Monitor. There has also been a global push towards finding alternatives to fossil fuels in steelmaking, as countries commit to achieving net zero emissions. In recent days, at least four Japanese steelmakers have tested the use of biocarbon — widely known as biochar — as a replacement for fossil fuels in their electric arc furnaces. In July, Tata Steel also tested the use of biomass as a feedstock at its ferro-chrome unit in east India's Odisha state. Sail's Rourkela plant has a crude steel capacity of 4.2mn t/yr and produces hot-rolled and coil-rolled steel as well as some long products. The company's total crude steel production fell by 7pc to 4.68mn t in April-June, compared with the previous quarter. By Amruta Khandekar Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more