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Largo Resources has been steadily making progress at its flagship Maracas Menchen mine in Brazil. It achieved record production of 21 tonnes in a single day, or 81 percent of its capacity, in March and then established itself as a low-cost producer when it reported production costs of $3.91 per pound.
The company has been working slowly but surely towards its production goal, and hopes it will reach 90 to 95 percent capacity by the third quarter of this year.
Another one of Largo’s objectives for the year, as outlined in its corporate presentation, is to focus on expense optimization, which also puts the company’s most recent announcement regarding its debt restructuring in line with its 2015 goals.
While debt isn’t necessarily considered positive, the fact that Largo’s lenders have countersigned a term sheet not only allows the company some breathing room while it focuses on the project, but also shows that its lenders are confident in it.
“I believe our Lenders share our vision of success for the Maracas Menchen Mine and that this is a testament to the quality and potential of the Maracas project itself,” Largo’s president and CEO, Mark Smith, said in a press release.
Having financial support as well as being able to lower production costs is essential given the current state of the vanadium market. Largo expects costs to drop to $3.21 per pound by the end of the year. If the planned extension of the facility is completed on schedule, the company predicts year-end exit costs as low as $2.60 by 2016.
While the expansion will likely rely on the vanadium price making a comeback, it’s difficult to tell when that might be. According to Metal Bulletin, the current price for vanadium pentoxide is hovering around the $4.05 mark. That said, China’s decision to remove its export taxes for vanadium, tungsten, molybdenum and rare earths could offer some price relief moving forward.
At close of day Thursday, Largo’s share price was sitting at $0.75, down 3.85 percent.
Securities Disclosure: I, Kristen Moran, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Related reading:
Analysts Comment on Largo’s 2015 Production Guidance and Outlook
Vanadium Outlook 2015: Stability and Balance in Store
Largo Resources Staying Positive in Less-than-Ideal Market