PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Rare earths miner Lynas has reported its second consecutive full-year profit during the year ended June, with net profits after tax increasing from A$53.1-million in 2018 to A$80-million.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization declined from A$121.9-million to A$100.7-million, while revenue reached A$363.5-million, a fall from the A$374.1-million reported in the previous financial results, despite record rare earth oxide production.
Rare earth oxide production for the full year reached a record 19 737 t, while neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) production increased from 5 444 t to 5 898 t.
However, revenue remained stable as a result of market price reductions and a higher proportion of lanthanum and cerium sold during the year, which resulted in a lower average price across the full product range.
CEO and MD Amanda Lacaze said on Thursday that the full-year results reflected the sustained operational improvements delivered by Lynas.
“Our ability to produce NdPr at the higher Lynas NEXT rates was proven ahead of schedule, and we introduced new separated ND and PR products as part of our product range.
“Significantly, these improvements were achieved in a year that presented some extremely challenging regulatory and market conditions,” she pointed out.
The Malaysian government earlier this month renewed the operating licence for the Lynas plant, subject to the company meeting specified conditions over the next six months, including moving its cracking and leaching operations offshore within the next four years.
Lacaze said that the renewal provided a clear pathway for the continued operation of the Lynas plant. However, she noted that market volatility continued, prompting Lynas to reserve NdPr production in the second half of the year, for the current and future needs of strategic customers. This led to a small inventory build by year end.