It has been quite a turnaround for Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) shares.
The lithium stock is up another 7.58% to 35.5 cents on Tuesday, taking its gain in 2026 to almost 30%.
However, the rebound has been much bigger over the past 12 months.
Core Lithium shares have climbed around 238% over that time, recovering from a 52-week low of just 9.7 cents. They also recently traded as high as 40 cents.
And today, there is another reason for shareholders to get excited.
Image source: Getty Images
Finniss is back in action
According to the release, Core Lithium has produced its first spodumene concentrate from the recommissioned Finniss processing plant in the Northern Territory.
The milestone was reached within 6 months of the final investment decision (FID) and in line with the company's September-quarter target.
The plant is still going through commissioning and optimisation, so there is more work to do before production settles into a steady rhythm. The next big milestone is the first shipment of newly produced spodumene concentrate, which is targeted for the December quarter.
Core Lithium has also used the restart to make several upgrades to the plant, including changes to the crushing circuit and screen refurbishments.
The company expects those improvements to support better recoveries and lift plant throughput by around 20% to 1.2 million tonnes a year.
Managing director Paul Brown said producing first concentrate was "another significant milestone" in the staged restart and pointed to the speed of the recommissioning work completed so far.
A lot has changed in 12 months
After such a big run, Core Lithium shares are in a very different place from a year ago.
At 35.5 cents today, the company is valued at roughly $1.15 billion and the share price is only around 11% below its recent 52-week high of 40 cents.
There has also been plenty of volatility along the way. The shares fell 9.2% last Wednesday and closed Monday at 33 cents before bouncing again today.
The Finniss restart is good news, but investors have already sent the shares much higher.
What happens next?
The next step is getting Finniss from first concentrate into steady production and, ultimately, shipments.
Ore from the Grants open pit is being used during the restart, while work on the BP33 underground mine is continuing at the same time.
After the huge rise in the share price, valuation is also definitely worth keeping an eye on.
TipRanks shows two analyst ratings from the past 3 months, with an average 12-month price target of 28 cents. That's around 21% below where Core Lithium shares are trading today.
