Eco Investor December 2018

Pre-Profit Securities

Pilbara Minerals Starts Earning Revenue

Eco Investor has upgraded Pilbara Minerals from a pre-revenue to a pre-profit stock as the company has commenced sales and first revenue. Last month it officially opened its Pilgangoora Lithium-Tantalum Project 120 kilometres south of Port Hedland in WA.

For the September quarter, the company received revenue of $16.4 million. At the end of the quarter it had a very healthy cash position of $90.6 million.

The project took over four years from start to sales, and the first shipment was in October. The company said that this is one of Australia's fastest and most efficient major lithium developments in recent times.

Stage 1 of the Pilgangoora Project is mining and processing 2 million tonnes per annum to deliver 330,000 tonnes per annum of 6 per cent lithium spodumene concentrate and 300,000 pounds per annum of tantalum, also known as tantalite concentrate.

Pilbara Minerals said that given the project's scale, its high product quality and expected low-cost of operations, it has decided to progress the Stage 2 expansion to 5 million tonnes per annum. This will increase the spodumene concentrate production to over 800,000 tonnes per annum. It has binding offtake agreements with its global offtake partners General Lithium, Ganfeng Lithium, POSCO and Great Wall Motor Company.

Pilbara Minerals now has a market capitalization of around $1.5 billion, and this year it was included in the S&P ASX 200 Index. (ASX: PLS)

Pilbara Minerals All Time Share Price. Source: CommSec