Liontown Resources Limited announced the successful commencement of underground production stoping at its flagship Kathleen Valley Lithium Operation in Western Australia on April 9. The first blast at the Mt Mann orebody, executed on schedule, marks a significant step in the transition of the project from open pit to underground mining. This marks Kathleen Valley as Australia's first operational underground lithium mine.

The initial firing extracted approximately 1,500 tonnes of ore from a stope designed to yield around 12,000 tonnes, equivalent to approximately two days of the plant's production capacity. Liontown's progress in developing the underground operation, which is expected to offer several advantages over traditional open-pit mining. These benefits include cleaner ore extraction through reduced waste contamination, leading to higher lithia recoveries and improved ore fragmentation for optimized processing throughput.

Prior to the commencement of stoping, Liontown conducted trial processing of previously extracted development ore, which graded approximately 1.5% lithium oxide (Li2O). These trials successfully confirmed the expected processability of the underground ore, achieving lithia recoveries exceeding 70%. The company anticipates further optimization of these recoveries through ongoing improvement projects.

The company's immediate focus remains on advancing the underground mine development, including extending the decline and opening up additional working areas. As outlined in their November 2024 business update, Liontown's short to medium-term objective for the underground operations is to safely target high-margin ore and maximize value. The mill is projected to be exclusively supplied by underground ore volumes and existing stockpiles by the fourth quarter of the 2026 financial year.

Tony Ottaviano, Liontown’s Managing Director and CEO, expressed his pride in this achievement, stating, "The successful commencement of underground stoping at our Kathleen Valley Lithium Operation on schedule is a proud milestone for Liontown." He credited the achievement to "advanced planning, the dedication of our team and the support from our mining partner, Byrnecut," ensuring the first stope blast at Mt Mann proceeded as planned.

Ottaviano further highlighted the importance of the prior underground ore trials, noting that they were conducted "in advance of first stoping, to understand the optimal plant performance settings." The results of these trials aligned with the company's study work, reinforcing their confidence in the transition to full underground operations. He concluded by emphasizing that this milestone "further strengthens our foundations for long-term value creation and future shareholder returns."

The commencement of underground production at Kathleen Valley positions Liontown as a key player in the global lithium market. This announcement marks a significant step forward for Liontown Resources as it transitions to a long-term, high-margin underground mining operation at Kathleen Valley.