Ann: Quarterly Activities Report - September 2018, page-105

Hi All,

Thought I'd share some information from the NMT Quarterly which might explain the off take pricing / delays. Looks like management are smart to be playing the premium "customer centric" product with an expected price of $15,000USD/t

Lithium Carbonate
The China domestic price of lithium carbonate softened in the September quarter, where increased supply of low
technical specification from Qinghai (i.e. product that requires significant refining to be useful in the battery industry
and high‐grade ceramics), China’s only lithium brine producing area, contributed to a short‐term supply surplus. Output
from Qinghai increased in early 2018 from 15,000 tpa in 2017 at a rate that projected a forecast 25‐30,000 tpa by the
end of 2018. However, excessive rain in the region led to some curtailed output and the forecast 25‐30,000t is unlikely
to eventualise in 2018. While quality remains a major issue for Qinghai producers, the lithium carbonate, much of which
is lower quality than technical grade, is being purchased and upgraded for mostly non‐battery applications. Reported
Chinese domestic prices in China dropped to an average of US$11,000/tonne for technical grade lithium carbonate and
US$12,000/tonne for battery grade material (EXW), falling 4.3% and 7.7% respectively. According to Benchmark,
despite the downward trend encouraging consumers to request discounted rates from producers in South America,
longer‐term agreements have insulated the major brine suppliers from significant decreases, with average lithium
carbonate prices falling by only 3.3% to US$14,500/tonne (FOB Sth. America) (Source: Benchmark Mineral Intelligence).