Albemarle Corporation announced that it will idle the final operating train, Train 1, at its Kemerton lithium hydroxide processing plant in Western Australia, placing it into care and maintenance with immediate effect. This follows the 2024 decision to suspend Train 2 and to halt expansion plans for Trains 3 and 4. The Kemerton facility, which processes spodumene sourced from the Greenbushes mine, was established to support the development of a Western lithium supply chain. Albemarle holds a stake in the Greenbushes operation and retains half of its offtake rights through a local joint venture.
Kent Masters, Albemarle’s chairman and CEO, noted that although lithium prices have shown recent improvements, market conditions for hard-rock lithium conversion in Western markets remain challenging. “Idling operations at Kemerton was a difficult decision,” Masters said. “This action improves our financial flexibility and preserves optionality as we navigate extended price volatility.”
The company expects the decision to be accretive to adjusted EBITDA beginning in the second quarter of 2026, without affecting its projected 2026 lithium hydroxide volumes. Albemarle plans to fulfill customer demand through alternative production channels. The company’s broader mining interests in Australia—including its holdings in Greenbushes and Wodgina, as well as exploration activities in Western Australia—are not impacted and continue to form core elements of its long-term strategy.
In conjunction with this announcement, Albemarle released its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 financial results and will discuss performance details during a conference call on Thursday, February 12, 2026, at 8 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Access to the call will be available via webcast on Albemarle’s investor website.
Source: PR Newswire
