PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Battery metals company Independence Group (IGO) is expected to produce its first battery grade lithium hydroxide from the first train of its Kwinana lithium hydroxide facility, in Western Australia, shortly.

IGO COO Matt Dusci told delegates at Paydirt’s Battery Minerals conference, in Perth, that construction of the 24 000 t/y Train 1 was on track, with the company also having committed A$18-million to construction of Train 1, which would add a further 24 000 t/y of production capacity.

Construction of Train 2 is slated to start in the first half of 2023, with an early works programme expected to start in the second half of this year.

The Kwinana facility would have the capacity to add two additional trains, taking full production capacity to 96 000 t/y.

The Kwinana facility is part of IGO’s joint venture Tianqi Lithium Corporation, which also includes the Greenbushes lithium mining and processing operations.

IGO in 2020 acquired a 49% interest in Tianqi Lithium Energy Australia through a share subscription, giving the company a 24.99% interest in the Greenbushes operation and a 49% interest in the Kwinana plant, in a A$1.9-billion deal.

Dusci noted that work was also progressing to expand production capacity at the Greenbushes operation to meet the increased demand for lithium product.

Near term expansion projects at Greenbushes include two additional chemical grade plants, dubbed CGP3 and CGP4, each with production capacity of 520 000 t/y of chemical grade concentrate as well as a tailings retreatment plant with production capacity of 280 000 t/y of chemical grade concentrate. 

Dusci noted that front-end engineering and design were under way for the CGP3 project, with construction likely to start in the first half of 2023, and potential commissioning scheduled for 2025, while the CGP4 project could be commissioned by 2027.

These projects, which are subject to any final JV approvals and market conditions, are planned to be funded from existing Greenbushes debt facilities, combined with Greenbushes cash flows.

IGO’s nickel growth plans were thrown into doubt this week, after takeover target Western Areas went into a trading halt after an independent expert reportedly found IGO’s A$3.36 offer for Western Areas to be neither fair nor reasonable.

IGO told shareholders that it would consider all options with respect to the scheme once the draft independent expert report was received and reviewed. However, the company stressed that there was no guarantee that the scheme would proceed.

Dusci said that IGO remained focused on pursuing growth opportunities that delivered value to shareholders, but would remain disciplined in the execution of all merger and acquisition activity.

For its own part, IGO is looking at extending the mine life of its own Nova nickel operation, in Western Australia, through the exploration and potential development of the Silver Knight deposit.

The company is considering a potential secondary openpit ore source for Nova, located 35 km away, and exploration planning is currently under way for Silver Knight, with an updated resource estimate expected during the second half of this year.