Just last week investors betting on a resurgence in lithium were cheering some much-needed positive news after Core Lithium unveiled a plan to revive its mothballed operations near Darwin.
On the surface, it was a momentous decision. Core was the first miner in Australia to consider reopening an idled operation since the downturn began, signalling that sentiment may finally be turning. The news sent the stock surging more than 40 per cent last week.
But dig a little deeper and Core Lithium’s bold move goes to the heart of the problem that continues to plague the industry – miners are not cutting enough supply and some are even opening or resuming operations. Spodumene prices had seemingly stabilised at around $US800 a tonne this year, a brief reprieve after a brutal 90 per cent collapse from its record above $US8000 a tonne in 2022.
For the rest of this article: https://www.afr.com/markets/commodities/hopes-of-lithium-revival-dashed-as-prices-crater-to-four-year-lows-20250521-p5m0xe