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- Pilbara Minerals (PLS) has signed an offtake agreement with the Yibin Tianyi Lithium Industry for its Pilgangoora Lithium-Tantalum Project in WA
- The 5-year agreement will see the ASX 200-lister supply Yibin Tianyi with up to 75,000 tonnes per annum of spodumene concentrate
- This month, Yibin Tianyi has taken an initial shipment of 20,000 tonnes and the second shipment is expected in the next few weeks
- Yibin Tianyi is based in the Sichuan Province of China and is aiming to become a leading lithium chemical and battery materials supplier
- The agreement also benefits Pilbara Minerals, as it further diversifies its customer base and supports long-term production from Pilgangoora
- In terms of the COVID-19 situation, the company hasn’t reported any material impact to its operations
- However, it continues to put the health and safety of its employees first
- Following today’s news, Pilbara Minerals is up a healthy 15.5 per cent and shares are trading for 16.8 cents each
Pilbara Minerals (PLS) has signed an offtake agreement with Yibin Tianyi Lithium Industry Co for its Pilgangoora Lithium-Tantalum Project in Western Australia.
The offtake agreement is for a five-year term and will see Pilbara Minerals supply up to 75,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of high quality, spodumene concentrate. An initial 60,000 tpa will be supplied this year but will increase to a minimum of 75,000 tpa for the remainder of its term.
This month, Yibin Tianyi has already taken an initial shipment of 20,000 tonnes. The companies are targeting a second shipment between April and May, with a regular delivery schedule to be maintained thereafter.
“This agreement is the outcome of the significant work which our team has been undertaking to further diversify our customer base and to support the large long-term production base now established at Pilgangoora,” Pilbara Minerals Managing Director and CEO Ken Brinsden said.
The offtake agreement with Yibin Tianyi was secured through Pilbara Minerals’ strategic relationship with Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL). CATL is China’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer and one of Yibin Tianyi’s largest shareholders.
Yibin Tianyi is based in the Sichuan Province of China and its strategy is to become a leading lithium chemical and battery materials supplier.
Currently, it is developing a lithium chemical plant in Sichuan with an initial production capacity of up to 25,000tpa of lithium chemicals from June 2020.
Eventually, however, Yibin Tianyi hopes to ramp up production to 100,000 tpa by 2022. If it succeeds, it will become one of the biggest lithium chemical suppliers in China.
“Given Yibin Tianyi’s position as a key lithium chemical supplier to our largest shareholder CATL, our new partnership will further integrate Pilbara Minerals within the supply chain of the world’s largest electric vehicle battery manufacturer,” Ken said.
The Pilgangoora Project is located in Western Australia and hosts one of the world’s largest hard rock lithium-tantalum deposits. It is recognised as one of the most important new sources of lithium raw materials globally.
In terms of the coronavirus, Pilbara Minerals hasn’t experienced any material impact to its Pilgangoora operations. The company is focused on the health and safety of its employees and has put in place appropriate measures to ensure both positive hygiene and health management to continue operations.
While there has been some disruption within the Chinese supply chain, the ASX 200-lister’s ability to secure sales, credit, and shipping has continued to function in China.
Following today’s news, Pilbara Minerals is up a healthy 15.5 per cent and shares are trading for 16.8 cents each at 11:10 am AEDT.
