Sibanye-Stillwater (JSE: SSW; NYSE: SBSW), a South African multinational mining company, recently announced that its subsidiary, Keliber Technology Oy, has secured a $554.2 million (US) green loan for its Keliber lithium project in Finland.
The loan comprises following three parts: (1) $277.1 million from export credit agencies (ECA); (2) $166.3 million from the European Investment Bank (EIB); and (3) $110.8 million (US) from a syndicated commercial bank.
Notably, the Finnish state-owned financing company Finnvera provided an 80% guarantee for the $277.1 million tranche from ECA.
This green loan will be used to complete the development of the Keliber lithium project. Sibanye-Stillwater plans to develop the Keliber project into a comprehensive lithium production operation, including lithium mining in Kaustinen, processing in Kronoby, and refining in Kokkola.
The project is scheduled to commence production in 2025, with an annual output capacity of 15,000 tons of lithium hydroxide. Initially, battery-grade lithium hydroxide will be produced using third-party ore, with production from the company’s own ore starting in 2026.
Keliber Technology Oy is primarily owned by Sibanye-Stillwater (79.8%) and the Finnish state-owned mineral group Finnish Minerals Group (20%), with the remainder held by a small group of Finnish investors.
Matti Hietanen, CEO of Finnish Minerals Group, stated that the Keliber lithium project is the flagship project for the Finnish Minerals Group. It is also an integral part of the Finnish battery value chain and, at the same time, the first integrated lithium project in Europe.
Source: WeChat Official Account—青蓝能源
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