Zijin Mining Group, China’s most valuable miner and an emerging lithium giant, announced it will miss its 2024 production target for lithium due to ongoing price declines.
The company’s lithium output will fall short of the 25,000-ton goal set for this year, it informed investors on Monday, despite reporting a 46% increase in first-half earnings.
The firm plans to slow the commissioning and construction of its lithium projects in response to the industry’s oversupply.
Zijin, primarily known for its copper and gold mining operations, has been expanding into lithium exploration in China, Argentina, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In light of the sharp drop in prices, Zijin revised its 2025 lithium production target downward by 20,000 tons to 100,000 tons.
In its earnings report, Zijin expressed that the current lithium surplus is likely to persist in the short term, although low prices may speed up the re-balancing of supply and demand.
Lithium carbonate, crucial for electric vehicle batteries, is currently trading at around three-year lows due to an oversupply that has outpaced the EV industry’s slower-than-expected demand growth.
UBS Group recently cut its price forecasts, predicting that the lithium market will remain in surplus until at least 2027.
