(Reuters) - Australia's Lynas Rare Earths on Thursday reported a 34.7% jump in first-quarter revenue, helped by a surge in demand for specialised metals used in electric vehicle components.
Global demand for minerals used to power electric-vehicle motors has continued to surge amid a global push to reduce carbon emissions from fossil-fuel powered vehicles, benefiting miners such as Lynas.
Rare earths minerals are also used in a wide variety of goods such as iPhones and military equipment.
The world's largest producer of rare earths outside China said revenue rose to A$163.8 million ($106.34 million) in the three months to Sept. 30, compared with A$121.6 million a year ago and a Barrenjoey estimate of A$146 million.
However, the miner's quarterly revenue fell about 44% sequentially due to operational challenges including a water supply disruption at its plant in Malaysia, which it flagged in July.
Production of neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr), used in magnets that power electric-vehicle motors, came in at 1,045 tonnes in the September quarter, compared with 1,255 tonnes a year earlier and a Barrenjoey estimate of 903 tonnes.
"Our NdPr, Nd and Pr customers (mostly outside China) continue to forecast very strong demand," Lynas said, adding that "FY23 full year production (at Malaysia plant) is anticipated to remain consistent with that achieved in FY22."
Lynas raked in an average selling price of A$49.3 per kilogram (kg) for its product range in the reported quarter, compared with A$44.6 per kg last year.
($1 = 1.5404 Australian dollars)
(This story has been corrected to say "revenue", not "production", in paragraph 5)