Core Lithium restarts spodumene concentrate production at Finniss after two-year hiatus
ASX-listed Core Lithium has produced first spodumene concentrate from the recommissioned Finniss processing plant, marking a key milestone in the company's staged restart of the Northern Territory-based operation following a downturn in lithium prices.
Core Lithium restarted mining at the Grants openpit in May and recommissioned the crushing circuit in August to establish sufficient crushed ore stockpiles for processing.
Notably, the production of first concentrate has been achieved within six months of the company announcing the final investment decision to proceed with the restart of Finniss.
The company is now focusing on optimising and sustaining plant performance, operational reliability and throughput.
Core Lithium undertook targeted upgrades to debottleneck the processing circuit and optimise recoveries, with upgrades having included screen refurbishments, rolls crusher enhancements and improvements to the ferrosilicon distribution system. The crushing and dense media separation operations have also been consolidated into a single control room.
Together, these upgrades are expected to support improved mineral liberation and recoveries, while increasing plant throughput capacity by about 20% to 1.2-million tonnes a year.
For context, Finniss started with initial spodumene concentration in February 2023 before being placed on care and maintenance in mid-2024 when lithium prices tumbled to multi-year lows.
The project has since been repositioned as a lower-cost, long-life operation with a 20-year mine life - with production averaging 214 000 t/y.
Finniss is the only major hard-rock lithium mine operating outside of Western Australia.
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