"Cauchari-Olaroz continues to deliver exceptional performance, sustaining production near design capacity for a second consecutive quarter while delivering first-quarter cash operating costs below
“Building on this foundation, the Stage 2 expansion at Cauchari-Olaroz is progressing well, and we intend to grow organically by leveraging Stage 1 cash flow alongside project-level debt, as necessary. Following strong performance in recent quarters, Cauchari-Olaroz has distributed approximately
“With improving market conditions and a proven operating platform, we believe we are one of the strongest positioned producers to add low-cost production capacity. We have a pipeline that we believe can support growth of four to five times what we have built to date. Importantly, we believe this can be achieved in a disciplined, phased development approach funded through project-level options and operating cash flow, ultimately delivering the strongest possible return to our shareholders."
Highlights
Cauchari-Olaroz
The Company holds a 44.8% equity interest in
- Lithium Production: Produced 9,660 tonnes of lithium carbonate in the first quarter of 2026, with the operation continuing to run at or near design capacity.
- The operation has averaged 97% of design capacity over the past two quarters supporting full-year guidance of 35,000–40,000 tonnes.
- Operating Costs: Cost of sales for the first quarter of 2026 was
$65 million , with cash operating costs of$5,391 per tonne1 of lithium carbonate sold.- Stable performance at design capacity has enabled a focus on optimization, with structural and operational improvements driving a continued reduction in unit costs.
- Pricing: Revenue for the first quarter of 2026 totaled
$168 million , reflecting an average realized price2 of approximately$16,818 per tonne of lithium carbonate sold. - Net Income: Net income for the first quarter of 2026 was
$49 million , compared to$31 million for the fourth quarter of 2025. - Adjusted EBITDA2: Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2026 was
$106 million , compared to$30 million in the fourth quarter 2025. - RMAP Conformance: Expect to receive conformant status shortly under the Responsible Minerals Assurance Process (“RMAP”), further supporting the commitment to responsible production and supply chain transparency.
PPG and Cauchari-Olaroz Expansion
- Stage 2 Expansion: Cauchari-Olaroz continues to advance an expansion plan to increase production capacity by 45,000 tpa of LCE (“Stage 2”).
- In
March 2026 , the Company published an updated mineral resource and reserve estimate expanding the Measured and Indicated resource by 42% to 28 million tonnes of LCE at an average grade of 562 mg/L lithium3. - The Stage 2 RIGI4 application and environmental permits were both filed in
December 2025 , with RIGI approval expected in the second quarter of 2026. - A comprehensive development plan and scoping study are expected to be completed by mid-2026.
- In
- PPG: Continues to advance an integrated development plan targeting capacity of 150,000 tpa of LCE across three phases, leveraging shared infrastructure and the consolidated resource base.
- Ganfeng and
Lithium Argentina continue to advance financing options with potential customers and strategic partners for offtake and minority ownership interests.
- Ganfeng and
Lithium Argentina Financial and Corporate
- As of
March 31, 2026 ,Lithium Argentina held$97 million in cash and cash equivalents, up from$61 million at the end of 2025. - In
March 2026 , the Company completed the$130 million debt facility (“Debt Facility”) from Ganfeng.- The Debt Facility has a 6-year term at an interest rate of SOFR plus 2.5% providing increased flexibility to support refinancing the Company’s existing corporate debt.
- The Company is advancing plans for a secondary listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (“ASX”), complementing its existing NYSE listing and broadening access to
Asia-Pacific investors. - In
May 2026 , the Company published its 2025 ESG report, highlighting continued progress across environmental, social and governance initiatives, including operational sustainability, community engagement and responsible production practices.
INVESTOR WEBCAST ______________ | |
AN INVESTOR WEBCAST HAS BEEN SCHEDULED FOR | |
| Please use the following link to access: First Quarter 2026 Earnings Webcast |
FINANCIAL RESULTS
Selected consolidated financial information of the Company is presented as follows:
| (in US$ million except per share information) | Three Months ended | ||||
| 2026 | 2025 | ||||
| $ | $ | ||||
| Income/(expenses) | 11.0 | (10.7) | |||
| Net income/(loss) | 7.5 | (7.2) | |||
| Income/(loss) per share – basic | 0.05 | (0.04) | |||
| Income/(loss) per share – diluted | 0.05 | (0.04) | |||
| (in US$ million) | As at 2026 | As at 2025 | |||
| $ | $ | ||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | 97.4 | 61.1 | |||
| Total assets | 1,159.4 | 1,099.8 | |||
| Total liabilities | (326.0) | (282.8) | |||
For the three months ended
This news release should be read in conjunction with Lithium Argentina’s unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and management's discussion and analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2026, which are available on SEDAR+ and EDGAR. All amounts are in
NON-IFRS AND OTHER FINANCIAL MEASURES
Exar Cash Operating Costs and Total Cash Costs per Tonne
Cash Operating Cost (C1) includes all expenditures incurred at the site, such as brine management, lithium plant processing, site and provincial office overheads, and inventory adjustments. These costs also include project general and administrative costs and sales logistics costs.
Total Cash Costs (C2) include all C1 costs, along with selling costs, export duties (net of refunds) and provincial royalties. Tonnes are reported on a tonnes sold basis at FOB Buenos Aires port.
RECONCILIATION TO NON-GAAP MEASURES
| In USD millions (unless stated otherwise) | Q1-26 | Q1-25 | Change | Q1-26 | Q4-25 | Change | |
| Cost of sales | M$ | 65.2 | 54.0 | 11.2 | 65.2 | 66.5 | (1.3) |
| (-) Depreciation and inventory net realizable value adjustments | M$ | (16.1) | (12.0) | (4.1) | (16.1) | (15.4) | (0.7) |
| (+) General & administration and sales logistics | M$ | 4.8 | 5.0 | (0.2) | 4.8 | 5.6 | (0.8) |
| C1: Cash Operating Costs | M$ | 53.9 | 47.0 | 6.9 | 53.9 | 56.7 | (2.8) |
| (+) Selling costs, duties and royalties | M$ | 8.2 | 2.0 | 6.2 | 8.2 | 4.0 | 4.2 |
| C2: Total Cash Costs | M$ | 62.1 | 49.0 | 13.1 | 62.1 | 60.7 | 1.4 |
| Li2CO3 Shipments (dry base) | tns | 10,006 | 7,146 | 2,860 | 10,006 | 10,114 | (108) |
| C1 Total Cash Operating Costs per tonne | $/tn | 5,391 | 6,634 | (1,243) | 5,391 | 5,618 | (227) |
| C2 Total Cash Costs per tonne | $/tn | 6,208 | 6,875 | (667) | 6,208 | 6,011 | 197 |
Notes: Quarterly amounts added together may not equal to the total reported for the period due to rounding.
Exar EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
Management presents these measures to provide investors and other stakeholders with additional insight into the operational performance of the asset in which
Exar EBITDA is defined as Exar’s net income (loss) before income tax expense (recovery), finance costs (net), and depreciation and amortization. Exar Adjusted EBITDA further excludes foreign exchange gains and losses, gains and losses arising from derivative liabilities, other income and expense items of a non-cash or non-operating nature. These adjustments reflect items that management considers to be outside the ordinary course of operations at the Cauchari-Olaroz project and that may obscure period-to-period and peer-to-peer comparability of operating results. We believe that disclosing these measures assists readers in understanding the ongoing cash-generating potential of our significant equity investee in order to provide liquidity to fund its own needs and service its outstanding debt, as well as repay loans provided by
| In USD millions (unless stated otherwise) | Q1-26 | Q1-25 | Change | Q1-26 | Q4-25 | Change | |
| Net income (loss) | M$ | 49.3 | (86.9) | +136.2 | 49.3 | 31.2 | +18.1 |
| (-/+) Income tax (recovery)/expense | M$ | 8.5 | (24.6) | +33.1 | 8.5 | (4.8) | +13.3 |
| (+) Finance costs, net | M$ | 23.0 | 36.2 | (13.2) | 23.0 | 26.5 | (3.5) |
| (+) Depreciation and amortization | M$ | 16.2 | 12.1 | +4.1 | 16.2 | 15.4 | +0.8 |
| EBITDA | M$ | 97.0 | (63.2) | +160.2 | 97.0 | 68.3 | +28.7 |
| (+/–) FX losses/(gains) | M$ | (4.2) | 0.7 | (4.9) | (4.2) | 1.7 | (5.9) |
| (–/+) Derivative (gains)/losses | M$ | 8.2 | 72.3 | (64.1) | 8.2 | (38.7) | +46.9 |
| (-/+) Other (income)/loss | M$ | 4.8 | (0.9) | +5.7 | 4.8 | (0.9) | +5.7 |
| Adjusted EBITDA | M$ | 105.8 | 8.9 | +96.9 | 105.8 | 30.4 | +75.4 |
Note: The reconciliation above has been prepared using financial information from
Derivative gains and losses reflect fair value changes related to an embedded derivative within Exar’s USD-denominated related party loans, that are contractually required to be settled in Argentine Pesos using the Blue-
Average realized lithium price
Scientific & Technical Information and Qualified Persons
The scientific and technical information in this press release in respect to the updated mineral resource has been reviewed and approved by the independent QPs listed below, each of whom is a “qualified person” as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects
David Burga ,P.Geo .Mark King , PhD PGeo., FGC
The scientific and technical information in this press release in respect of Cauchari-Olaroz has been reviewed and approved by
ABOUT
For further information contact:
Investor Relations
Telephone: +1 778-653-8092
Email: kelly.obrien@lithium-argentina.com
Website: http://www.lithium-argentina.com
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
This news release contains “forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements” (which we refer to collectively as forward-looking information) under the provisions of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as “seek”, “anticipate”, “plan”, “continue”, “estimate”, “expect”, “may”, “will”, “project”, “predict”, “propose”, “potential”, “target”, “intend”, “could”, “might”, “should”, “believe”, “scheduled”, “implement” and similar words or expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking information. Forward-looking information in this news release include, without limitation, information with respect to the following matters or the Company’s expectations relating to such matters: mineral resource estimates; the impacts of the increase in resources on the Company’s growth strategy and for staged capacity expansions at Cauchari-Olaroz; the timing and amount of future production, capacity and anticipated costs; expectations with respect to Stage 2; expectations with respect to the PPG joint venture, including the timing for closing the joint venture and financing plans; the ability of the Company to refinance its existing corporate debt; production guidance; permitting and expectations related to the Company’s RIGI applications; the Company’s consideration of additional stock exchange listings.
Forward-looking information may involve known and unknown risks, assumptions and uncertainties which may cause the Company’s actual results or performance to differ materially. This information reflects the Company’s current views with respect to future events and is necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company today, are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingences, and accordingly, the Company can give no assurance that these assumptions and expectations will prove to be correct. With respect to forward-looking information included in this news release, the Company has made assumptions regarding, among other things: current technological trends; a cordial business relationship between the Company and third party strategic and contractual partners, including the co-owners of the Company’s projects; the business relationship between the Company and Ganfeng; ability of the Company to fund, advance and develop Cauchari-Olaroz and its other projects, and expected production and the timing thereof at Cauchari-Olaroz; ability of the Company to fund, advance and develop PPG; the successful operation of Cauchari-Olaroz under its co-ownership structure; ability of the Company to produce battery quality lithium products; the ability to operate in a safe and effective manner; uncertainties relating to obtaining and/or maintaining mining, exploration, development, environmental and other permits or approvals in
Although the Company has attempted to identify important risks and assumptions, given the inherent uncertainties in such forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results to differ materially. Forward-looking information is made as of the date hereof and the Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise the forward-looking information contained in this news release, except as required by law. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.
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1 Cash operating costs includes all expenditures incurred at the site such as brine management, lithium plant processing, site and provincial office overheads and inventory adjustments. These costs also include project general and administrative costs and sales logistics costs. Cash operating cost per tonne is a non-GAAP financial measure or ratio and does not have a standardized meaning under IFRS and might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other issuers. See “Non-IFRS and Other Financial Measures”.
2 Refer to section titled “Non-IFRS and Other Financial Measures” below.
3 Canadian investors should refer to the technical report titled “2026 Cauchari-Olaroz NI 43-101 Technical Report, Jujuy, Argentina” with an effective date of
4 Incentive Regime for Large Investments, Régimen de Incentivo para Grandes Inversiones
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