Core Lithium Reaches First Finniss Concentrate With A$181.8 Million Cash

Finniss Returns to Production

Core Lithium Ltd (ASX:CXO) has crossed the most visible threshold in its Finniss restart: first spodumene concentrate was produced in September, after the 30 June financial year-end. The company is now targeting its first shipment of newly produced concentrate from the Grants open pit in the December quarter of CY26, with plant commissioning and optimisation still under way.

The milestone follows the March 2026 Final Investment Decision and a rapid transition from care and maintenance to active mining. Core says Grants mining began in the June quarter, while the BP33 underground portal cut was completed and decline development advanced in parallel. That staged sequence is designed to create an earlier production pathway at Grants while building the longer-life underground operation.

Cash Buffer Supports the Restart

Core finished FY26 with A$181.8 million in cash, compared with A$23.5 million a year earlier. The balance was built through an A$120 million institutional equity raising and the first tranche of a US$70 million convertible-note package from Glencore and InfraVia. Subsequent to year end, Core received about A$62.2 million from the second convertible-note tranche and drew A$35.2 million, net of transaction costs, under Nebari’s senior secured loan.

That funding came at a cost. Core reported a net loss of A$26.0 million for FY26 and operating cash outflows of A$21.1 million, as care-and-maintenance costs, corporate expenses and the restart transition outweighed revenue from stockpile sales. The balance sheet nevertheless gives the company funding headroom for BP33 development, while Grants cash flows were not included in the sources of funds used to finance BP33 through steady-state production.

Grants and BP33 Set the Production Sequence

NRW received an approximately A$50 million contract for 11 months of surface mining at Grants, while Develop Global secured a A$274 million three-year contract for BP33 underground development and mining, with an option to extend for two years. Core expects first development ore from BP33 in mid-CY27 and steady-state production of 1.2 million tonnes per annum by mid-CY28.

The company’s stated Finniss plan is built around a 20-year mine life and nameplate spodumene concentrate production of 214,000 tonnes per annum. Its reported Ore Reserve increased 3% to 15.6 million tonnes at 1.27% Li2O, containing 198,000 tonnes of Li2O, after the Grants reserve was increased to 1.53 million tonnes at 1.42%. These are estimates, and the report identifies lithium prices, recoveries, operating performance, capital costs, approvals and execution as material variables.

Exploration Adds a Second Growth Test

Core is also drilling beyond the current operating plan. A BP33 hole reported after year end returned 34.08 metres at 2.09% Li2O from 578.70 metres, while drilling continues to test extensions outside the existing 10.5 million tonne resource. At Blackbeard, within 20 kilometres of Finniss, a 12,150-metre diamond drilling campaign is aimed at advancing the prospect towards a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate.

Core has defined a conceptual Exploration Target at Blackbeard of 7.0 to 10.0 million tonnes at 1.5% to 1.7% Li2O. The company cautions that there has been insufficient exploration to estimate a Mineral Resource and that further drilling may not result in one. Core also acquired the 63-square-kilometre Bynoe tenement from Charger Metals, consolidating its landholding around Blackbeard.

Portfolio Simplification and Governance Reset

Core has narrowed its portfolio around lithium. It sold its uranium interests to Elevate Uranium for A$2.5 million in cash, shares and a 1% royalty on future production from EL31449, while its gold and other non-lithium assets were spun out into Axiant Resources. Axiant listed on the ASX after year end, with Core retaining an initial 33% holding and its lithium rights across the divested tenements.

The board also changed during the transition from explorer to producer. Greg English retired as chair after 16 years, Malcolm McComas became chair, Paul Brown took over as managing director and CEO, and Mark Hine joined as a non-executive director. Anna Neuling was appointed after year end, while Heath Hellewell retired from the board in July.

The Next Test Is Sustained Output

The annual report records a successful restart on paper, but the operating evidence is still early. The plant has produced first concentrate, not yet demonstrated sustained production or completed the first new-product shipment. Grants commissioning, shipment timing, operating costs and cash generation will therefore provide the clearest near-term test of whether the funded restart is translating into the lower-cost operation described by management.