Liontown Resources amends loan and supply deals with Ford Motor; shares advance

(Reuters) -Liontown Resources said on Thursday it amended its loan and spodumene supply agreements with Ford Motor, aiming to bolster near-term liquidity and gain more flexibility in marketing output as production ramps up at its Kathleen Valley lithium project in Western Australia. Under the revised terms, Liontown said principal and interest payments due to Ford over fiscal 2026 would be deferred by 12 months; all other loan conditions remained unchanged. Shares of the battery minerals producer climbed 3.4% to A$1.065, their highest since mid-June 2024, outperforming the broader S&P/ASX 200 benchmark, which rose 0.3% as of 2318 GMT. The company also halved the remaining spodumene concentrate volume to be delivered to Ford from 2027 onwards to 256,250 dry metric tons and said no deliveries would occur in 2027 and 2028. Liontown added that Ford has the option to waive its take-or-pay commitments for those remaining volumes. Amendments would allow Liontown to sell more product on the spot market or pursue new strategic partnerships, it said. The amended deal comes a week after Perth-headquartered Liontown said it would revise pricing terms with Tesla in their long-term offtake agreement as the miner sought broader exposure to lithium pricing benchmarks. (Reporting by Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)

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