The Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) share price is jumping on Monday morning.
At the time of writing, the lithium miner's shares are up 6% to 83 cents.
This follows the release of the company's full year results and the announcement of its maiden shipment.
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Liontown share price jumps on results release
- Net loss after tax of $64.9 million
- Cash and equivalents balance of $122.9 million
- Maiden shipment announced
- First spot sales completed at premium
What happened during the 12 months?
It certainly was an eventful 12 months for the lithium miner in FY 2024.
During the period, the company was busy developing its Kathleen Valley Lithium Project in Western Australia.
However, as the completion of this development came after the end of its financial year, Liontown inevitably posted a sizeable loss for the year. It recorded a net loss after tax of $64.9 million.
Nevertheless, the company ended the period with a cash balance of $122.9 million and is now producing lithium from Kathleen Valley and generating cash inflows.
In addition, since the end of the financial year, Liontown has announced a US$250 million (A$372 million) investment and 10-year offtake extension from foundational partner, LG Energy Solution. It believes this paves the way for long-term growth from Kathleen Valley.
How does this compare to expectations?
According to a note out of Bell Potter, it was expecting an EBITDA loss of $46 million and a net loss of $55 million.
Whereas over at Goldman Sachs, its analysts were forecasting in an EBITDA loss of $65 million and a net loss of $46.5 million.
What else?
This morning, Liontown announced that it has achieved further major milestones with the maiden shipment of spodumene concentrate and the commencement of spot sales for spodumene concentrate from Kathleen Valley.
In respect to the former, the company has successfully loaded and dispatched the inaugural shipment of spodumene concentrate from its flagship operation. This first shipment is en route to China for an existing offtake customer and comprises concentrate with a grade that complies with product specifications and contractual commitments.
Management believes it is a pivotal milestone for the company as a lithium producer and marks the beginning of generating revenue from the Kathleen Valley operations.
It continues to progress ramp-up milestones at Kathleen Valley, having produced >28,000 wet metric tonnes (wmt) of concentrate at a weighted average grade of 5.2% since announcing first production.
Spot sales
Also potentially giving the Liontown share price a boost this morning is news that is has started make spot sales.
The initial spot sale of 10,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate was to a Singapore-based trader and achieved a reference price of US$802 per dry metric tonne (dmt) of SC6. This was a premium to spot prices.
Its shipment is scheduled for early in the fourth quarter of 2024. Liontown reported this sale to reporting agencies (PRA) as part of its commitment to price transparency.
Management commentary
Commenting on its shipment and spot sale, Liontown's managing director and CEO, Tony Ottaviano, said:
The successful shipment of concentrate from Kathleen Valley is a pivotal moment for the Company. Over the past six years, Liontown has focused on developing and constructing a world-class tier-1 lithium operation, and now we announce the beginning of generating revenue and cash flow, as we see our plans come to fruition.
Within two months of first production at Kathleen Valley, we have not only successfully produced and now shipped concentrate, with a weighted average Li2O content of 5.2%, 6 but we have also achieved a sale on the spot market, realising a premium sales price in the current market conditions, and demonstrating the consistent demand for high-grade battery products. This achievement underscores the strong planning capabilities and operational excellence of our team but also the support from our Tier 1 logistics partner Qube.
The Liontown share price remains down 70% over the past 12 months.
