PLS delivered record spodumene concentrate production of 267,600 tonnes at Pilgangoora in Western Australia in the September quarter, up 25 percent, supported by the restart of the Ngungaju processing plant in July, improved feed quality and ore sorting, and stable performance at the Pilgan plant. Overall lithia recovery was 74.7 percent and total material mined rose to 11.5 million tonnes. Unit operating costs fell 12 percent to $539 a tonne from $616 a tonne in the June quarter.
Volumes did not convert into revenue this quarter. Concentrate sales fell 11 percent to 223,600 tonnes, partly because a 15,000 tonne shipment was delayed from September to October by congestion at Port Hedland, and the average realised price fell 14 percent to US$1,809 a tonne, or US$2,077 a tonne on a 6 percent concentrate basis. Quarterly revenue fell 24 percent to $563 million, while the cash balance stood at $2.22 billion and net cash at $1.28 billion at September 30. The split, record production and lower realised prices, is the lithium tape in one quarter: supply delivery is beating price.
The growth frame is P2000. After the quarter PLS approved a $1.9 billion final investment decision for the expansion, centred on the new Jimmagunya processing plant, targeting annual concentrate capacity of about 2 million tonnes with first production expected in the September quarter of 2029. Full year FY27 guidance is held at 1.03 to 1.10 million tonnes of production at unit operating costs of $575 to $625 a tonne, while capital expenditure guidance rose to $1.13 billion to $1.195 billion for the expanded investment programme.
The power agreement is the cost story inside the expansion. Under the 20 year purchase agreement, Pilgangoora connects to Fortescue’s Green Grid, making PLS Fortescue’s first external Green Grid customer. About A$150 million will be invested in the transmission connection and associated infrastructure from FY27 to FY29, providing more than 100 MW of transmission capacity. Once supply starts, P2000 unit operating costs are expected to fall by about A$15 to A$20 a tonne against the final investment decision cost base, and power related emissions intensity is expected to fall by about 80 percent, from 0.69 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per MWh in FY23 to about 0.13 by FY30. Fortescue chief executive Dino Otranto framed the deal as the start of an energy supply business with a pipeline of other Pilbara customers, which makes the agreement a Fortescue infrastructure story as well as a PLS cost story.