After conducting a review into its Cosmos nickel mine in WA, IGO has made the decision to transition the site into care and maintenance.
The closure is expected to be concluded by the end of May this year, with IGO assessing the value of continuing work on select exploration programs in the area.
The news comes after IGO advised the company would see through the current slump in lithium prices but would reduce production at its Greenbushes lithium joint venture in WA.
“This is not the outcome anyone at IGO wanted, however we cannot ignore the operational and financial risks involved in continuing to develop Cosmos in the current environment,” IGO managing director and chief executive officer Ivan Vella said.
“We still believe there is value in Cosmos, however in this nickel environment we need to be disciplined with our allocation of capital, while retaining our optionality to restart if market conditions improve.”
IGO also released its December 2023 quarterly, reporting that both net cash and group nickel production had been reduced.
“Our industry is facing some significant challenges and uncertainty with both nickel and lithium experiencing a downturn in the cycle,” Vella said.
It is expected that there will be redundancies owing to the closure, but Vella said IGO is committed to working with its people.
“I’d like to thank the team on site who have done an outstanding job to work through the challenges, and to progress the project to where it is today,” he said.
“Prioritising and minimising the impact on our team through this process is our absolute focus and we will provide every support we can to those people affected.”
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