Name of the Project
Keliber lithium hydroxide project.

Location
Central Ostrobothnia, Finland.

Project Owner/s
Multinational mining company Sibanye-Stillwater owns 79.8% of the project, with Finnish Minerals Group holding 20% and other Finnish shareholders 0.2%.

Project Description
The project entails the development of four opencast and three highly mechanised underground, mining operations – Syväjärvi and Rapasaari, which will be developed first. Development of the Emmes, Outovesi and Länttä operations will follow towards the end of the project life. These operations are situated across Kaustinen, Kokkola and Kronoby.

Ore mined will be fed to the Päiväneva concentrator, which will be situated close to the Rapasaari mine. The concentrator will have an estimated capacity of 200 000 t/y of spodumene concentrate, which will be transported 66 km to the Keliber lithium refinery in the Kokkola Industrial Park.

Once operational, the refinery is expected to produce an estimated 15 000 t/y of lithium hydroxide monohydrate for more than 18 years.

Potential Job Creation
By the end of the fourth quarter of 2023 the employee headcount had reached 70.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The 2019 updated definitive feasibility study (DFS) has estimated a pretax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of €510-million, compared with the €295-million estimated in the 2018 DFS.

The pretax internal rate of return has also increased from 24% in the 2018 DFS to 28% in the 2019 updated DFS.

The payback period for the project has decreased from 5.5 years to 3.7 years.

Capital Expenditure
The total capital investment to complete the construction phase is estimated to be €783-million. 

At the end of December 2025, total project capex for the construction phase amounted to €693-million and in line with the revised capital forecast of €783-million in 2024 real terms. 

Planned Start/End Date
Construction and cold commissioning of the fully integrated Keliber project (mine, concentrator and refinery) remains on track for completion in the first quarter of 2026. A staged start-up will result in commissioning of the mine and concentrator first, with the timing of refinery commissioning to be determined in line with lithium market conditions.

Latest Developments
Completion of the construction phase is planned for the first quarter of 2026. 

Sibanye-Stillwater has reported in its results of the six months and year ended December 2025 that full-year 2025 capital expenditure (capex) totalled €299-million, consistent with the 2025 annual guidance of €300-million. 

As communicated in January 2026, following a detailed multidisciplinary assessment of various project startup scenarios during the second half of 2025, Sibanye-Stillwater and its partner, Finnish Minerals Group, agreed that a staged startup was the most responsible approach. 

Staged commissioning of the mine, concentrator and refinery reduces ramp-up risk by prioritising operational readiness in the mining and concentrating stages before determining the appropriate timing for refinery commissioning. This approach also preserves financing flexibility by allowing for the deferral of capex and refinery ramp-up costs, depending on lithium market developments and broader market conditions. 

Despite encouraging improvements in lithium prices during the fourth quarter of 2025 and into early 2026, the longevity of these price levels is yet to be confirmed. 

The first stage of the project startup started in the first quarter of 2026, with the first blast at the Syväjärvi openpit mining area on February 11, 2026.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Metso Outotec (sustainable soda pressure leaching technology).

Contact Details for Project Information
Keliber Oy, tel +358 10 567 0600 or email info@keliber.fi.