7 Sheffield Resources Limited Annual Report 2023 CONTENTS FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR IN REVIEW DIRECTORS’ REPORT CORPORATE DIRECTORY SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION Figure 4: Thunderbird mine site overview Waste mining contractor, Carey Mining, mobilised excavation and trucking fleet to site, commencing clearing and grubbing activities, with commenced waste mining to enable mining contractor Piacentini & Son to access the starter pit location in the September 2023 quarter. During the reporting period the preferred product logistics path from site to port was concluded. Rotainers will be loaded at the Thunderbird site and transported by road train to a storage yard near the Port of Broome. Upon vessel arrival for loading, rotainers will be transferred to the Broome jetty for loading onto vessels using the existing crane. A rotainer supply agreement is in place with rotainers to be delivered to Broome during the December 2023 quarter. Markets Premium zircon from major producers moved from c.US$1,350 per tonne in mid-2019 through to a peak of c.US$2,200 per tonne in 2022 and then softening to c.US$2,100 per tonne in late 2022. Global zircon supply remains balanced, and inventory levels remain low, with some new supply coming online during 2023. Major producer prices are expected to remain above US$2,000 per tonne through 2023, well above long term price forecasts. The medium to long term supply outlook for zircon continues to indicate an emerging supply deficit with supply from the three leading producers representing c. 55% of current supply, primarily from mature operations with flat or declining forecast production. Global sulfate ilmenite prices were essentially flat in 2022 and have weakened during 2023 but remain very high relative to long term forecasts at around US$330 per tonne FOB. Sulfate ilmenite prices are expected to soften further. Longerterm, high-grade pigment feedstock demand for production of chloride grade pigment is forecast to grow, and chloride slag (produced from sulfate ilmenite) is the most likely source of new supply. The trend towards China importing and processing concentrates to supply zircon and titanium feedstocks continued throughout 2023 and is expected to continue into the future.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjE2NDg3