You said....4: I also think it tells the Chinese: Hey if you are...

You said....
4: I also think it tells the Chinese: Hey if you are willing to pay the true price, then there could be room for future small offtakes

This offtake doesn't guarantee anything about price. China is currently controlling the price. We are currently price takers, not makers.
The current sutuation with price really pisses me off. China will likely stockpile our spod, at close to cost of production, for as long as the price is low. They will be going hammer and tongs to produce from their "domestic" supplies, but will also take everything they can from us at these low prices. It's like stealing part of a Western project, when you can take it for close to the cost of production. When they exhaust their "domestic" supplies, they will use our spod to keep the price low for as long as possible, and drag this low price environment out for as long as possible.
The only thing that stops this is a rise in demand above that which China can deal with. We need the Western supply chain built out, and quickly. This will put an end to the price manipulation, as we will become price makers.
One thing is certain, the longer price stays down the bigger the rebound will be.
Our management are doing a great job in difficult circumstances, in my opinion. Let the Chinese have our scraps, if they'll pay. The formula for calculating price is even better than our previous contracts, given it is based of carbonate pricing, which is trading at a premium. This short-term offtake says nothing about our long term strategy of targeting the Western supply chain.
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