Port Hedland's Li concentrate exports rise in November

The West Australian port of Port Hedland increased its exports of lithium concentrate to China to 28,494t in November from 24,150t in October.

Two shipments were made to Chinese offtake partners from lithium concentrate producers in the Pilgangoora area of Western Australia.

Lithium concentrate exports have slowed markedly in 2019 as a result of producers cutting back on production and a bottleneck in Chinese conversion of concentrate into lithium carbonate and hydroxide. Prices have slumped to $500-550/t compared with $900-$1,000/t in early 20018.

Australian lithium producers such as Pilbara Minerals and Mineral Resources have either reduced production or put it on hold to ride out the lithium price fall, which has also sent at least one Australian and one Canadian lithium producer into administration.

US-based Albemarle, which has a joint venture with Mineral Resources at the Wodgina mine in Western Australia and at a lithium hydroxide plant it is building in the southwest of the state, thinks the lithium market will find a supply-demand balance towards the end of 2020.

Port Hedland also exported 112,650t of manganese ore in a single shipment to China in November, compared with 112,485t in a single shipment to China in October. November exports of copper concentrates fell to 22,341t to China and the Philippines, down from 38,767t to China, the Philippines, India and Japan in October.

By Angus Macmillan

source: Argus Media