Largo Announces Third Quarter 2022 Production and Sales Results Highlighted by Record High Purity Vanadium Production

  • Tuesday, October 18, 2022
  • Source:ferro-alloys.com

  • Keywords:Ferroalloy, Vanadium, Molybdenum, Tungsten, Manganese Ore, Chrome Ore,Iron Ore
[Fellow]Largo Announces Third Quarter 2022 Production and Sales Results Highlighted by Record High Purity Vanadium Production

[Ferro-Alloys.com] Largo Announces Third Quarter 2022 Production and Sales Results Highlighted by Record High Purity Vanadium Production; Completes Battery Stack Manufacturing for its 6.1 MWh VCHARGE VRFB Deployment in Spain

Q3 2022 and Other Highlights

V2O5 production of 2,906 tonnes (6.4 million lbs1) vs. 3,260 tonnes produced in Q3 2021; Lower quarterly production due to a planned kiln and cooler refractory refurbishment and a change of mining contractor, but was in line with the Company’s revised production guidance

Record high purity V2O5 equivalent production of 962 tonnes, representing 33% of the Company’s Q3 2022 production

V2O5 equivalent sales of 2,796 tonnes (inclusive of 351 tonnes of purchased material) vs. 2,685 tonnes sold in Q3 2021; Completed first high purity V2O3 sale in Europe in Q3 2022

Average benchmark price per lb of V2O5 in Europe of $8.23, a 12% decrease from the average of $9.40 in Q3 2021; High purity vanadium demand has increased following ongoing recovery from 2020 COVID-19 impacts, which was partially offset by a softening of steel demand in Q3 2022

The Company advanced construction of its ilmenite concentration plant, including receiving all required metallic flotation structures and building of desliming, flotation, filtration, warehouse and pipe rack structures; Expects commissioning completed in Q2 2023

Largo Clean Energy (“LCE”) progressed with the delivery of its Enel Green Power España (“EGPE”) VCHARGE vanadium redox flow battery (“VRFB”), including the manufacturing of all high-power battery stacks required for the system; The Company has begun shipping battery stacks and electrolyte to the deployment site in Mallorca, Spain

Largo Physical Vanadium Corp. (“LPV”) commenced trading on the TSX Venture Exchange on September 27, 2022 under the symbol “VAND” and launched a new website www.lpvanadium.com

Published inaugural Climate Report aligned with the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), providing additional transparency on the Company’s approach to climate change

Largo Inc. today announces production of 2,906 tonnes (6.4 million lbs1) of vanadium pentoxide (“V2O5”) equivalent and sales of 2,796 tonnes of V2O5 equivalent from its MaracásMenchen Mine in Q3 2022.

Construction of Largo’s ilmenite concentration plant progressed in Q3 2022, including the building of desliming, flotation, filtration, warehouse and pipe rack structures. (Photo: Business Wire)

Construction of Largo’s ilmenite concentration plant progressed in Q3 2022, including the building of desliming, flotation, filtration, warehouse and pipe rack structures. (Photo: Business Wire)

Paulo Misk, President and CEO of Largo, stated: “Production of V2O5 in Q3 2022 was impacted by a refractory refurbishment and a mining contractor transition, while V2O5 equivalent sales were affected by shipping delays and lower spot demand. However, despite experiencing production impacts, the Company produced 962 tonnes of high purity material in the quarter to meet increased demand from this sector. The Company remains on track to meet its 2022 production and sales guidance range of 11,000 to 12,000 tonnes.” He continued: “The construction of our ilmenite concentration plant continues to progress, with substantial portions of its foundation and framing structures delivered and erected. We also made considerable progress on the delivery of our EGPE VRFB deployment following the manufacturing of all required high-power battery stacks for the system. We look forward to providing additional updates as these projects continue to advance.”

He concluded: “In October, we published our inaugural Climate Report aligned with the Taskforce for Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). We believe being transparent about our approach to climate change is part of our vision to enable the planet’s transition to a low carbon future and remain committed to delivering positive and sustainable benefits to all Largo stakeholders.”

Q3 2022 Overview

Q3 2022 Production Includes Increased Production of High Purity Material: V2O5 equivalent production from the MaracásMenchen Mine was 811 tonnes in July, 1,140 tonnes in August and 955 tonnes in September for a total of 2,906 tonnes produced in Q3 2022. Production in July was impacted by a refractory refurbishment in the kiln and cooler with production in September being largely impacted by a lower amount of mined material due to the transition of mining contractors, which was completed in September. The transition to a new mining contractor was required to ensure compliance with the Company’s mining plan after a reduced quantity of material was removed in previous quarters due, in part, to performance issues with the former service provider. In Q3 2022, 962 tonnes of high purity V2O5 equivalent was produced, representing 33% of Q3 2022 production and the highest quarterly amount of high purity material produced by the Company to date. In Q3 2022, global recoveries3 averaged 80.7%, representing a 4% decrease over the average in Q3 2021, mainly due to the reasons noted above. In Q3 2022, 351,450 tonnes of ore were mined with an effective grade2 of 1.02% of V2O5. The lower ore mined and effective grade2 during the quarter was due to the mining contractor transition. The Company produced 99,513 tonnes of concentrate with a V2O5 grade of 3.26%.

Commercial and Vanadium Market Update: In Q3 2022, the Company sold 2,796 tonnes of V2O5 equivalent (Q3 2021 – 2,685 tonnes), including 351 tonnes of purchased products (Q3 2021 – 136 tonnes). Lower sales in Q3 2022 are largely attributable to weaker spot demand during the quarter as well as ongoing shipment delays. The Company delivered both standard grade and high purity V2O5, as well as ferrovanadium (“FeV”) to customers and completed its first high purity V2O3 sale in Europe in Q3 2022. Demand in the steel market softened in Q3 2022 due to geopolitical uncertainties and concerns over energy prices and availability—most notably in Europe. However, high purity vanadium demand remains steady and is continuing to recover from the lows of 2020, supported by renewed optimism in the travel and aerospace industries.

EGPE 6.1 MWh VCHARGE Deployment: The Company’s EGPE VCHARGE VRFB continues to be the primary focus of LCE. All high-power battery stacks have been manufactured and the Company has proceeded with factory acceptance testing. The required battery stack containers are fully assembled, and final validation and factory acceptance testing remains ongoing. Additionally, the required electrolyte storage containers are progressing through the final painting, lining and integration process. A majority of the required alternating current ("AC") components have been manufactured and factory-accepted, and shipment to the deployment site has begun. The battery deployment site is under construction and LCE expects to begin equipment installation in November 2022. LCE continues to experience a number of shipping and logistical delays related to certain components for its EGPE VRFB deployment. However, management of LCE are monitoring the situation closely and expect the commissioning of the EGPE VRFB to be completed by the end of Q1 2023.

Interconnection of a 3 MWh Demonstration VRFB in Shirley, Massachusetts: In Q3 2022, LCE and National Grid completed grid interconnection of a 3 megawatt-hour demonstration VRFB in Shirley, Massachusetts (previously installed by VionX Energy and commissioned by LCE). National Grid completed the final witness test in August and approved LCE's interconnection to the grid in mid-September. Since then, LCE has successfully operated the Shirley VRFB on the grid and the battery will be used to further optimize performance of the solar shifting application going forward.

  • [Editor:tianyawei]

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