Name of the Project
Pioneer Dome lithium project.

Location
Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia, about 130 km south of Kalgoorlie.

Project Owner/s
Develop Global, through 100%-owned Essential Metals.

Project Description
Develop has approved Stage 1 of Pioneer Dome as a direct shipping ore (DSO) operation, rather than an immediate concentrator development. 

Stage 1 contemplates openpit mining of the Cade deposit over a 12-month period to produce 850 000 t of DSO, at a production rate of about 70 000 t a month and a product grade of about 1.2% lithium oxide. The DSO will be crushed and hauled about 270 km to the Port of Esperance for export.

The broader May 2024 scoping study outlined a production target of 8.1-million tonnes at 1.2% lithium oxide from openpit and underground mines. Stage 2, involving further development of Cade by underground mining, is expected to be evaluated in the March 2027 quarter, subject to prevailing lithium market conditions.

The project contains multiple outcropping pegmatite orebodies and hosts a Dome North mineral resource estimate of 11.2-million tonnes at 1.2% lithium oxide, comprising 8.6-million tonnes indicated at 1.23% lithium oxide and 2.6-million tonnes inferred at 0.92% lithium oxide.

The current final investment decision (FID) is for a Stage 1 DSO openpit operation at Cade; further underground development remains a Stage 2 evaluation item.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The Stage 1 DSO FID forecasts a pre-tax internal rate of return of 55%, and payback of about two months from the first DSO sale.

Capital Expenditure
Stage 1 preproduction capital expenditure (capex) is estimated at A$40-million. The May 2024 scoping study had estimated preproduction capital of A$285-million for the build-own concentrator scenario and A$35-million to A$40-million for the mine-gate sale/toll treatment scenario.

Planned Start/End Date
Develop is targeting the award of mining, crushing and haulage contracts in the June 2026 quarter, site establishment and contractor mobilisation in the September 2026 quarter, the start of openpit mining in the September 2026 quarter, and DSO production and first DSO product sales in the December 2026 quarter.

Latest Developments
Develop announced on June 10, 2026, that its board had made an FID on the Stage 1 DSO development of Pioneer Dome and that Trafigura would provide a $400-million financing and offtake package covering Pioneer Dome and Sulphur Springs. The package comprises a $350-million senior secured loan facility and a $50-million warrant package.

Trafigura has entered into an offtake agreement for Pioneer Dome DSO covering a minimum of 750 000 dry metric tonnes, excluding up to 30 000 dry metric tonnes that may be auctioned to third-party buyers during the initial term. Shipments are expected to start in the December 2026 quarter. 

Pricing will be based on a floating formula linked to the lithium carbonate price, DSO grade, lithium recovery from DSO to spodumene concentrate and concentrate grade, with an initial floor-price mechanism covering no longer than the first two months of deliveries, up to 150 000 t.

Develop intends to fund the A$40-million Stage 1 preproduction capex through the Trafigura loan facility and existing cash reserves.

The company has said its project team is advancing execution activities, with mining, crushing and haulage contracts to be awarded in the June 2026 quarter.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Trafigura and Trafigura Asia Trading (DSO offtake); Trafigura (financing); Primero (process plant and nonprocess infrastructure, and capital/operating cost estimates under the May 2024 scoping study); and Trepanier (geology and mineral resources). 

Contact Details for Project Information
Develop Global, tel +61 8 6389 7400 or email hello@develop.com.au.