PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Lithium miner Pilbara Minerals has closed a stellar financial year, reporting record production and sales, as well as a 326% increase in net profit, which was reported at A$2.4-billion.

The ASX-listed company reported a 64% increase in spodumene production which reached 620 100 t during the full year, up from the 377 900 t in the previous financial year, with sales also increasing by 68% to 607 500 t, compared with the 361 000 t sold in the 2022 financial year.

As a result, revenue for the full year increased by 242%, to A$4.1-billion, up from the A$1.2-billion in the previous reporting period, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation increased by 307% from A$0.8-billion to A$3.3-billion.

“The FY23 period has been an exceptional year for Pilbara Minerals across all fronts. Strong operational performance within a healthy pricing environment for lithium products has translated to an impressive set of financial outcomes for the business and our shareholders,” said MD and CEO Dale Henderson.

“This strong financial result has enabled the board to support a fully franked final dividend of 14c per share resulting in a total dividend of 25c per share for FY23. It has been a very successful year for Pilbara Minerals, including strong operational performance, progression of the mine expansion and progress with the Company’s downstream chemicals strategy.

“Expansion highlights include P680 construction progression to provide an additional 100 000 t of production capacity and the P1000 Project final investment decision (FID) which is expected to lift total production to around one-million tonnes a year. In the area of chemicals, our joint venture (JV) with POSCO for the development of a jointly owned lithium hydroxide plant moved into construction, and we finalised the mid-stream demonstration Plant FID with our JV partners Calix.”

For the 2024 financial year, Pilbara Minerals has set a production target of between 660 000 t and 690 000 t of spodumene concentrate at a product grade of around 5.2%. The company has also set an operating cost target of between A$600/t and A$670/t, with capital expenditure on the growth projects projected to be between A$490-million and A$540-million for the financial year.

“Today we also announced a 35% increase in ore reserves to 214-million tonnes which has enabled us to commence a new study to explore further expansion of production capacity beyond P1000. This potentially opens the door for additional tonnage to be allocated for downstream and midstream growth opportunities which will be reviewed as part of the strategic partnering process with outcomes now targeting the March quarter of 2024,” said Henderson.

“The long-term outlook remains very positive for battery grade lithium raw materials with continued adoption of EVs and battery storage and an expected growing deficit as anticipated demand for lithium outstrips expected supply. During the past quarter the industry saw a pullback in pricing from the strong pricing encountered in the first half of the financial year. Despite this pullback strong margins continued to be realised.

“Looking forward, we expect continued growth in demand for our product with some ongoing pricing volatility in the shorter term as the supply chain continues to tightly manage inventories and responds to macro-economic conditions.

“Pilbara Minerals has entered the new financial year with continued momentum in pursuit of our ambition to be a leader in the provision of sustainable battery materials products.”