MinRes to Restart Bald Hill Lithium Mine as Spodumene Market Recovers

Mineral Resources is restarting the Bald Hill lithium mine in Western Australia, marking a clear operational response to the recovery in spodumene concentrate prices and adding fresh momentum to the state’s battery-minerals sector.

The 100%-owned Bald Hill operation was placed on care and maintenance in November 2024 after weaker lithium pricing made continued production unattractive. The restart announced on 19 May 2026 reverses that holding pattern and brings a fully built hard-rock lithium asset back into service in the Goldfields region, about 50 kilometres south-east of Kambalda. 

Bald Hill is not a greenfield build or an early-stage restart dependent on major construction. The site has existing inventory, available mining equipment and established workforce networks across the MinRes business. Site activity is scheduled to ramp up in late May, with mining and crushing to begin in June and first spodumene concentrate production targeted for July. The first shipment through the Port of Esperance is expected in the first quarter of FY27, with full production capacity anticipated in the second quarter of FY27. 

The restart gives MinRes additional leverage to improving lithium demand at a point when operational flexibility is becoming a critical advantage for producers. Bald Hill has capacity of about 165,000 dry metric tonnes per year of 5.1% spodumene concentrate, equivalent to about 140,000 dry metric tonnes of SC6. Its reported Mineral Resource stands at 58.1 million tonnes at 0.9% Li₂O, providing a substantial resource base behind the restart. 

MinRes will use its internal Mining Services division to deliver mining, crushing, processing and haulage at Bald Hill under its integrated build-own-operate model. That structure gives the restart a practical execution advantage, with capability already embedded inside the group rather than dependent entirely on external mobilisation. The company expects the restart to create about 370 jobs, including around 110 positions to be filled through redeployment from other MinRes operations, with those roles then backfilled elsewhere in the business. 

Managing Director Chris Ellison framed the timing around stronger demand for spodumene concentrate and the company’s capacity to move quickly. Once Bald Hill resumes production, MinRes says it will be the only company globally operating three hard-rock lithium mines, each with its own spodumene concentrate facility. 

The decision also puts Western Australia’s lithium operating base back in focus after a difficult period for the sector. Lithium producers spent much of the downturn preserving balance sheets, slowing production, delaying growth capital or placing marginal tonnes on care and maintenance. Bald Hill’s restart shows how quickly idle capacity can return when prices recover enough to support production economics.

For contractors, suppliers and service companies, the return of activity at Bald Hill should flow through mining, crushing, processing, haulage, maintenance, camp services, fuel, tyres, parts, consumables and logistics into Esperance. The restart is therefore more than a pricing signal; it is an immediate operational event with workforce and procurement implications across the Goldfields lithium supply chain.