[SMM Daily Review] On February 20th, the price of lithium carbonate slightly decreased.

On September 8, Core Lithium announced that its Finniss Lithium Project in Australia’s Northern Territory had produced its first spodumene concentrate from the recommissioned processing plant. The milestone was achieved around six months after the company made the final investment decision (FID) to restart Finniss in March 2026 and was in line with its target for the September quarter. Mining at the Grants open pit resumed in May, followed by the restart of crushing operations in August, while the processing plant is currently undergoing commissioning and optimisation. According to Core Lithium, upgrades to the processing plant are expected to improve mineral liberation and recovery rates while increasing processing capacity by approximately 20% to 1.2 million tonnes per annum. The company continues to target the first shipment of newly produced spodumene concentrate in the fourth quarter of 2026, while development of the BP33 underground mine is also progressing.

CALB signed a cooperation agreement with the Changfeng county government on Sept 8, officially landing its Hefei research institute. The project includes pilot lines, R&D labs and testing centers for lithium batteries and related products. CALB chairwoman Liu Jingyu said the institute will build a full-chain innovation loop from R&D to pilot verification to product testing, with over 2,000 R&D staff to be recruited. CALB's Hefei base phases I and II are in production, phase III is about to start and phase IV is under construction; at full capacity it will become CALB's largest production base in China.

Today, SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate spot prices drifted lower compared with the previous working day. The lithium carbonate 2701 contract opened lower today at 142,900 yuan/mt, then quickly dipped after the open, hitting a low near 140,600 yuan/mt, before consolidating and rebounding. In early trading, bulls gained momentum and prices shot up to an intraday high of 144,400 yuan/mt, before encountering selling pressure from bears and pulling back below the average price line. Around midday, bulls and bears tussled repeatedly in the 140,000-142,000 yuan range, with prices moving sideways around the average price line. In the afternoon, the market was in a stalemate between bulls and bears, and prices fluctuated slightly in late trading, closing near 142,000 yuan/mt. The contract ultimately settled down 0.69% at 142,000 yuan/mt, with open interest increasing by 6,860 lots. In the spot market, downstream buyers maintained a dip-buying procurement pace, but some material plants were more cautious, pressing their acceptable purchase prices below 140,000 yuan/mt. Upstream lithium chemical plants continued to hold back from selling spot orders and held prices firm, with limited release of low-priced cargoes. Price disagreements between sellers and buyers persisted, while market inquiries were relatively active, and actual transactions were mainly driven by rigid demand.