Albemarle (ALB) -3.1% post-market Wednesday after reporting a larger-than-expected Q4 adjusted loss and saying it will idle a major Australian lithium processing plant, as the company continues to face weak prices for the battery metal.
Albemarle (ALB) said it will idle the last active train at its Kemerton lithium hydroxide processing plant in Western Australia and place it into care and maintenance effective immediately, and canceled plans to add two new trains; the company closed another train at the site last year.
The Kemerton site processes spodumene, a type of hard rock containing lithium, from the Greenbushes mine, one of the world’s best spodumene resources; Albemarle (ALB) co-owns the mine with China’s Tianqi Lithium.
“Unfortunately, recent lithium price improvements alone are not enough to offset the challenges facing Western hard-rock lithium conversion operations,” Albemarle (ALB) Chairman and CEO Kent Masters said.
Albemarle (ALB) said its mining interests in Australia, including its holdings in Greenbushes and Wodgina and exploration interests in Western Australia, are not affected by the Kemerton decision, as they remain core components of the company’s strategy.
For Q4, Albemarle (ALB) swung to a net loss of $455.9M, or $3.87/share, from a net profit of $33.6M, or $0.29/share, in the year-earlier quarter; on an adjusted basis, including charges tied to the sale of its Ketjen refining catalyst business, the company lost $0.53/share.