Australia's Alita Resources takes price cut on shipment amid tough lithium market

20th August 2019 By: Esmarie Iannucci - Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor: Australasia

Alita Resources said on Tuesday that its shipment of lithium concentrate to a China-based chemicals maker was below a previously set floor price amid higher lithium supply.

Alita, which is also listed in Singapore, said it was in discussions with Jiangxi Bao Jiang Lithium Industrial to restructure the offtake agreement it signed in January.

It shipped 10 500 dry metric tonnes (dmt) of lithium concentrate to the Chinese company below the agreed floor price of $680/dmt, as the lithium miner sought to offload its stockpile due to a challenging market for spodumene, a hard-rock mineral mined for lithium.

A shipment at the beginning of August went according to the pre-determined price.

Market conditions for lithium, a key ingredient in the battery industry, have worsened because of lower demand from Chinese customers after a change in the country's electric vehicle subsidies and global trade tensions.