IGO shares fall after 'another difficult quarter'
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More news: IGO shares lost ground on the ASX after the critical miners producer turned in a weaker-than-expected second quarter result.
IGO shares were down 2.2% $5.04 by 12:40pm AEDT, extending losses of more than 30% over the last 12 months.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Kaan Peker said IGO experienced "another difficult quarter", with Q2 EBITDA and free cash flow coming in softer than market estimates.
Despite IGO's part-owned Greenbushes mine operating at a run-rate above full-year guidance, Peker said, the miner's Nova operation is set to miss production and cost guidance, while an EBITDA loss at its Kwinana plant was "notably higher than expected".
IGO widens loss in second quarter as sales fall
The news: Critical minerals producer IGO has reported a second quarter underlying loss after lower sales and the loss from its TLEA joint venture with China’s Tianqui.
The numbers: The lithium and nickel miner posted an underlying earnings loss of $79 million for the three months to December 2024, down from a $2.9 million loss in the September quarter. Sales revenue was down 8% to $131.8 million, while IGO’s share from TLEA was a loss of $56.7 million, compared to a $37.1 million profit in the first quarter.
IGO shares were down 3.3% to $4.98 in early trading on the ASX.
The context: The company said sales revenue was down due to lower average nickel prices realised at Forrestania due to the end of its nickel hedging program, as well as the nil contribution from the Cosmos mine, which was closed in the first quarter.
The shared loss from TLEA reflected lower sales from the nickel business and lower spodumene sales and realised prices from Greenbushes — Australia’s biggest lithium mine.
The miner last week confirmed it was ending all work and activity at the part-owned Kwinana lithium hydroxide refinery in Western Australia while it finalises impairments at the unit amid challenging market conditions.
The source: ASX announcement
