Wildcat Resources has completed the definitive feasibility study for Tabba Tabba, its greenfield lithium project near Port Hedland in Western Australia’s Pilbara, and the study is bigger and faster than the prefeasibility work that preceded it. Stage one carries capital cost of A$774 million, about A$87 million above the prefeasibility estimate, with the increase attributed to a materially faster delivery timeline.
The plan centres on a 2.25 million tonne a year stage one operation, with the company targeting annual production of up to 600,000 tonnes of 5.5 percent spodumene concentrate by 2031, four years earlier than the 2025 prefeasibility study envisaged, and with more of the later expansion to be funded from operating cash flow. Managing director AJ Saverimutto cited a capital intensity of A$1,662 per tonne of SC6 equivalent, which the company calls industry leading against brownfield expansion benchmarks at Greenbushes, Pilgangoora and Mt Marion, helped by a single large pit and the short haul to Port Hedland.
The resource base underneath the study is established: Tabba Tabba hosts 74.1 million tonnes grading 1.0 percent lithium oxide, with a probable ore reserve of 46.3 million tonnes at 0.99 percent. Wildcat closed the September quarter with about A$76.1 million in cash after the first tranche of a A$60 million institutional placement, and it is also advancing a maiden resource at the nearby Bolt Cutter Central discovery.
The study lands in a soft price tape: lithium prices have fallen from about US$2,500 a tonne to recent levels near US$1,600, and the lithium and battery miners index in the latest market tables is down 5.26 percent on the week. The company’s case rests on the longer supply picture, with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence estimating the world needs the equivalent of 134 additional lithium mines by 2050. A final investment decision and full project financing remain ahead.