IGO Limited

Thanks Darcy. Good morning and thanks for joining IGO's September quarter results call. I'm also joined by our CFO Ian Rowe who will take you through some of the financial results and join me for the questions. It was a strong operational quarter and it delivered several things that we told you to expect. CGB3 at Greenbushes reached nameplate in December which was very pleasing to see after the fire. that was ahead of our end of year target that was reset back in July. And obviously, despite the recovery, the team went through following that fire. Greenbush has moved back into the high-grade core of the mine since the March quarter, and that's been delivering as we signposted. We achieved record or saw record production of 435,000 tonnes through the quarter. Nova is on track to finish above the life of mine guidance that we upgraded in July, and our group underlying EBITDA was 176 million. We ended the quarter with net cash of 376 million. There are also some areas that we haven't yet delivered, what you were waiting for, and I'll address each of those ones directly. The timing for the Greenbush's SOR, the strategic options review outcomes, the distributions from TLEA to its shareholders, and obviously the pathway and future for Kornana. Safety at our joint venture operations also remains a key focus, and I want to take some time on this call to recognize NOVA. This week, many of the leadership team were on site to mark the end of mining, and it ultimately closes a very important chapter for IGO. First, let me spend a moment on the safety performance. Our 12-month group, TRIFA, for IGO increased marginally from 3.7 at the end of June to 4 at the end of September. That reflects two recordable injuries at Nova in the September quarter and some lower exposure hours as the business ramps down. The group periphery is 50% lower than a year ago and I've talked previously about the tremendous improvement and focus the team's had on safety and the results that we've seen from that. But this quarter is a reminder that progress is not linear and transitions are like doing an over to carry additional risk and we must stay vigilant right until the demobilisation is complete. As I also said earlier this year, safety at Greenbushes had deteriorated through FY26 and it's been a significant focus of the Winfield board, Rob and the management team at Greenbushes It was pleasing to see that through the last quarter, safety at Greenbush has stabilised to some degree. There are still many challenges and areas to work through, and the team's very focused on that. The 12-month TRIFA at Greenbush is 9.7 at the end of the September quarter. TRIFA at Kornanas, 12.7, has trended upwards over the past 18 months. Again, it's a strong area of focus for the team and the management at the refinery. it is too high and it's something I know that they are focused on addressing and bringing down. The business has stayed cash generative.

I'll just turn to Nova.

first and then come back to the lithium business. It's our final full quarter and Nova's produced in that quarter 4,635 tons of nickel up 19%, 2,144 tons of copper up 27%. Both increases came from better mining performance and higher mill run time. Unit cash costs fell $2 a pound, obviously that's representing both the by-product credits but also the trend down of costs. I think you've seen the teams had great focus on their production stability, very, very strong focus on productivity and then careful focus on cost and that reflects that ramp down while still hitting fantastic production outcomes. Nova generated sales revenue of $158 million. underlying EBITDA of 56 and free cash flow of 67 million. And in July, we upgraded NOVA's life of mine guidance, 19,000 to 20,000 tons of nickel. When we take October production into account, it's still being finalized. We're on track to exceed the top end of that upgraded range with cash costs below the bottom of the cost range. So a really fantastic outcome through those final periods. Difficult for the team knowing it's coming to a close, but they should be very proud of how they've approached that and the results they've delivered. I also want to call out and recognize Barmenco, our mining partner, who's been a big part of that fantastic performance. Nova's been a remarkable asset for IGO. Sirius Resources discovered it in the Fraser Range in 2012, came to IGO with Sirius acquisition in 2015. and while still under construction and moved into commercial production in 2017. We've concluded a few photos that seem celebrating final ore coming out of the mine on Monday this week. It's a milestone that belongs to many employees, contractors and partners who've contributed to Nova over the years, including the Naju Traditional Owners in partnership with whom Nova was developed and operated. As you can expect, it's a bittersweet moment. There's a lot of sadness at the end of this era and pride in what Nova achieved and the relationships that were built along the way. It's one of the standouts talking to the team at site. They've got deep connections and friendships that will carry well beyond their time at Nova. Some people have been there through its entire life and started their careers there even. Yesterday, I was on site meeting some of the team completing processing of the available oil I met with one of the operators, Troy, who was there to commence processing for the very first tonne of ore, and he will also be there later this week, most likely being the one who presses the button to stop the mills when the last ore is processed. So, amazing accomplishment, and to see the connection the team's had, the pride to see it through. Many examples of team members saying that they've had various other job offers that, you know, hotly sought after in the market. wanted to stay on and finish the work and all credit to them. I went down to the Barminka workshop. They're busy packing up their equipment and tools and shipping it off to their next sites. Our mining team are finalizing their reporting and wrapping up their work. Across the board, there's a huge amount of pride on the site as a team reflect on how well they finished this operation. Personally, I've seen this kind of thing in different commodities in different parts of the world in my career, and this is really a standout performance across the board. Ultimately, I think the team will carry a very unique experience into their next sites and next roles. I want to thank everyone who's contributed to Nova over the past decade. It is a great example for the mining industry of how to discover, build, operate, deliver, and responsibly produce the commodities the world needs from a mine, including the handoff now to global lithium resources. Over its life, Nova mined about 14 million tonnes of ore and produced 221,000 tonnes of nickel, 99,000 tonnes of copper. It generated $5.4 billion in revenue and $2.9 billion in cumulative free cash flow, paying out nearly $250 million in royalties. and creating nearly 500 direct jobs. It stayed generative through the cash, through the nickel downturn of 2023 and 2024 when much of the West Australian nickel industry did not. And as we outlined in July, Nova goes straight from mining to new ownership. No care and maintenance period, no delay, no extra costs. We expect to complete the divestment to global lithium resources during the December quarter. With that, let me turn on to the lithium business. And first, just a brief word on the lithium market. given the recent volatility. And as I've said on all of the previous calls, I don't ever try and call the lithium price and I won't try and start today. But just maybe share some observations, both near term and longer term on this very volatile market. Firstly, on demand, I mean, look, battery production measured in gigawatt hours, which is the big picture, continues to grow strongly, particularly it has for energy storage. And both in the near term and long term outlook for demand, lithium demand remain strong. Supply is the much bigger uncertainty and it's unclear how quickly it's going to respond as that growth in demand flows through. Delays in projects, changes in projects, cost pressures make it hard to predict. There are many moving parts in the supply side which is what creates obviously a lot of volatility and I suspect that will continue in both directions. Some other more near-term observations I would like to make. I mean, prices seem to have fallen further than near-term fundamentals justify. Chinese inventories are still drawing, and energy storage demand still remains strong. It's quite possible there'll be some partial recovery in the coming months, but volatility will continue, and I'm sure that with new supply pulling through, we're not going to see any sustained run-up in prices. Through 2027, the risk is supply, not demand. New supply and growth from brownfield and curtailed assets could loosen the market, but equally, delays, cost pressures, et cetera, will mean it remains volatile, and the market balance in 2027 is really very difficult to predict. Our response is unchanged. Capital discipline, conservative price assumptions, and a focus on a low-cost, long-life asset like greenbushes Even at the bottom of the last cycle, Greenbush has delivered EBITDA margins of around 60% and kept paying out dividends. Our focus stays on what we control, safety, productivity and cost. At Greenbush's, our record quarterly production of 435,000 tonnes was up 12%. As we signposted, the mine has been back in the high-grade course since the March quarter and is performing well overall. The improvements in the mine are very noticeable and the productivity and conformance to plan through winter has been a standout. Mine grade rose slightly to 1.77% and recovery has improved, supported by CGP3 reaching nameplate. Cash costs fell 7% to $418 a tonne with the FY27 guidance of $380 to $440. the EBITDA margin increased to 83%. So it's a strong quarter and a good start to the financial year. As I've said before, we set guidance carefully and we want to see this performance sustained. I know that concentrate inventory and shipping rates have been a recurring question. Sales were 376,000 tonnes, down 4%. The team worked through a number of port constraints. and it meant that the smaller average cargo sizes and some restrictions ultimately with inventory increasing. Port capacity is one of the key enablers of the work on the Strategic Options Review and Taliesin is working hard on that. The average realized price for spodumene fell 7%, US$2,130 per tonne, in line with the price reporting agencies. Winfield paid out a dividend of $680 million to its shareholders during the quarter on a 100% basis. TLA's share was $347 million. And on the strategic options review, I want to be direct. In April, I said that we'd hope to be able to share the outcomes in the September quarter. We haven't met that timing. Taliesin has substantially completed the technical work. Following extensive technical and peer review, it has identified significant value opportunities in four areas. the resource and reserve optimisation, some of that we called out in the reports in January, February, mine design, including steep pit walls, mine scheduling, recoveries and product grades. Realising these opportunities also depends on critical enablers, such as water, tailings, port logistics and capacity. Pulling all of that together, the remaining step is valuations. and that'll be finalized through the coming months and built into the Taliesin's calendar year 27 budget and their future plans. The Winfield partners are aligned on the work required to unlock this value and naturally all pursuing that with real focus. Because this is a joint venture asset, how and when those outcomes are released needs to be worked through with our partners and how we'll communicate that. Turning to Kwinana, As we foreshadowed in July, the shutdown to commission the Kautzine or off-gas treatment system is extended into the September quarter. That work is now complete. The lithium hydroxide production was naturally impacted, 918 tonnes produced through the available days in that quarter. Conversion costs were just over $33,000 per tonne and that was naturally elevated due to the limited operating window. EBITDA lost $65 million on a 100% basis, including $32 million inventory write-down. Our view of Kwinana's economics hasn't changed. The high volumes don't change that. In August, I said that we're working through this with Tianqi. That work's been ongoing for some time. We continue those constructive discussions, but it is a complicated issue and, of course, remains an important priority. I'll now turn it over to Ian for some comments on the financials.