FY2021
From testing to feasibility work
Kachi definitive feasibility and environmental work commenced. High-purity lithium-carbonate test results were development milestones, not commercial production.
ASX: LKE · Five-year financial review
(ASX: LKE) Lake Resources N.L. Financial Review - FY2021~25
Lake Resources N.L.’s FY2021–FY2025 consolidated accounts describe a lithium-brine developer principally funded through equity. A large FY2022 cash build was followed by sustained operating and exploration cash use; this review keeps statutory results, MEP/FX effects, Group balance-sheet values, cash-flow lanes and exploration accounting separate from project studies, resources or valuation.
Reading the figures: Units are stated above each table or beside the metric. Brackets denote negative amounts. Supported nil is shown as zero; unlike reporting bases remain separately labelled.
FY2025 cash
A$12.371m
Group cash and cash equivalents at 30 June 2025.
FY2025 loss
A$(21.067)m
Consolidated statutory loss after income tax.
FY2025 net assets
A$144.444m
Group total equity / net assets.
FY2025 E&E + rehab
A$140.837m
Final selected Group carrying measure; not project valuation.
Five years in context
Lake is development-stage rather than an operating producer in the selected accounts. Kachi development and direct-lithium-extraction work are project context only; no resource, reserve, study output or projected production is presented as revenue, cash flow or enterprise value.
The five-year story is a large equity-funded development push followed by a retrenchment. The FY2022 capital raise built the cash buffer; subsequent project spending, corporate costs and currency movements depleted it. Lower spending and non-core divestments became important by FY2025.
The improvement in the latest statutory loss is not a transition to commercial production. Cost reductions, a disposal gain and VAT remeasurement helped the result, while external funding remained essential.
Events behind the numbers
FY2022
Technology partnership and funding
The September 2021 Lilac agreement linked technology and funding to an earn-in of up to 25% of Kachi. That ceiling was not an immediately earned interest; equity funding expanded the development cash buffer.
FY2023
Demonstration progress
The demonstration programme produced 2,500 kg of lithium-carbonate equivalent, reported at battery-grade purity. Lilac earned a further 10% interest in April 2023; pilot output is not mine sales.
FY2024
Cost cuts and a slower partner process
March 2024 headcount reductions accompanied a funding reset. Lake said lithium-market conditions were extending the strategic-partner process for Kachi.
FY2025
A narrower project focus
Further July 2024 cost reductions were followed by the November sale of Paso de Jama, Olaroz and Cauchari. The non-core divestment released cash while Kachi remained the development focus.
FINANCIAL REVIEW / 01
Statutory result: cost, MEP, FX and VAT drivers
The loss widened in FY2023 and FY2024 before reducing in FY2025. Detailed rows retain reported signs and show MEP, FX and VAT remeasurement separately, avoiding an artificial recurring-income or cost series.
MEP transactions used US-dollar-denominated securities to obtain Argentine pesos. Gains depend on currency-market conditions and transaction volume; they are not recurring lithium operating revenue. The FY2022 comparative separates MEP from FX previously shown net, so the components must not be added again to the original net figure.
Consolidated loss after income tax
A$ million
Loss after income tax
AI-generated presentation · values from Consolidated statutory result and material drivers; no missing values plotted as zero.
Consolidated statutory result and material drivers
A$ million
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss after income tax | (2.894) | (5.683) | (47.253) | (54.023) | (21.067) |
| Administrative expenses | (0.234) | (0.869) | (2.973) | (2.923) | (2.218) |
| Corporate expenses | (1.270) | (3.416) | (9.446) | (7.765) | (2.937) |
| Employee benefits expense | (0.728) | (1.836) | (13.978) | (23.244) | (14.304) |
| Consultancy and legal costs | (0.551) | (3.374) | (15.405) | (10.175) | (4.058) |
| Share-based payments expense | (0.109) | (2.426) | (13.019) | (6.900) | (3.657) |
| Depreciation expense | (0.000337) | (0.051298) | (0.207433) | (0.700923) | (0.858641) |
| Foreign-exchange gain/(loss) | 0.299 | (2.404) | (25.578) | (22.493) | (0.222) |
Amounts retain the statutory sign: expenses and FX losses are negative; income/gains are positive. MEP gain is other income, not mining sales.
FY2022 MEP and FX use the FY2023 comparative components (A$9.357m and A$(2.404)m). They replace, rather than add to, the earlier net FX presentation.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
MEP and financing-income drivers (FY2022–FY2025)
A$ million
| Metric | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gain on Electronic Payment Market (MEP) | 9.357 | 43.697 | 21.721 | 1.202 |
| Interest income | 0.035 | 2.890 | 1.497 | 0.505 |
| Finance costs | (0.010) | (0.197) | (0.149) | (0.435) |
MEP is an Argentine securities/foreign-exchange mechanism, not lithium sales. FY2022 uses the separately presented following-year comparative.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
VAT receivable remeasurement (FY2023–FY2025)
A$ million
| Metric | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| VAT receivable remeasurement gain/(loss) | (10.661) | (2.999) | 1.590 |
Remeasurement is an accounting gain/(loss), not cash receipts or product revenue.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
FINANCIAL REVIEW / 02
Group position and OCI
Asset backing is not the same as readily available funding: much of the balance sheet sits in capitalised exploration. At June 2025, current liabilities exceeded current assets by A$1.903m. The going-concern disclosure depends on additional capital and cash-flow management; the auditor highlighted the material uncertainty without modifying the opinion.
Translation reserve and its movement below belong to owners of the parent. Group OCI also includes non-controlling interests, so it is not interchangeable with the reserve movement. Neither is the P&L exchange result or the exchange effect on cash.
Group cash and total liabilities
A$ million
Cash and cash equivalentsTotal liabilities
AI-generated presentation · values from Consolidated Group financial position at 30 June; no missing values plotted as zero.
Consolidated Group financial position at 30 June
A$ million
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and cash equivalents | 25.657 | 175.444 | 89.217 | 22.902 | 12.371 |
| Total assets | 47.919 | 223.885 | 193.417 | 177.635 | 162.985 |
| Total liabilities | 1.048 | 5.053 | 17.093 | 23.062 | 18.541 |
| Total equity / net assets | 46.871 | 218.832 | 176.324 | 154.573 | 144.444 |
Consolidated Group statement of financial position throughout; parent-only and subsidiary/NCI summary rows were not used.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
Foreign-currency translation reserve and OCI movement
A$ million
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Translation reserve — closing balance | 0.389 | 0.465 | (7.988) | 4.360 | 6.429 |
| OCI translation movement attributable to owners | (0.225) | 0.076 | (8.454) | 12.348 | 2.069 |
The reserve and OCI-movement row are presented on an attributable-to-owners basis. They are distinct from Group total OCI, P&L FX and exchange-rate changes on cash.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
FINANCIAL REVIEW / 03
Cash deployment, funding and divestment
Operating activities used cash in every year. The latest investing inflow came with non-core asset-sale receipts and sharply reduced exploration spending, not mining operations turning cash-positive. MEP receipts also sit within investing cash in the later years.
Subsequent July–August 2025 financing belongs after the five-year balance-sheet cut-off. Conditional/pro-forma funding disclosures must not replace June cash; parts of the announced funding were still subject to shareholder approval.
Operating, investing and financing cash flows
A$ million
Net cash from/(used in) operating activitiesNet cash from/(used in) investing activitiesNet cash from financing activities
AI-generated presentation · values from Consolidated cash-flow lanes; no missing values plotted as zero.
Consolidated cash-flow lanes
A$ million
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net cash from/(used in) operating activities | (2.433) | (8.679) | (27.734) | (39.797) | (25.767) |
| Net cash from/(used in) investing activities | (4.798) | (25.368) | (24.063) | (17.999) | 10.792 |
| Payments for exploration and evaluation | (4.718) | (23.597) | (66.523) | (39.179) | (5.116) |
| Net cash from financing activities | 32.832 | 183.834 | 1.769 | 14.031 | 3.841 |
Negative figures are reported cash outflows. Gross exploration payments are separate from net investing cash flow.
The exchange-rate effect on cash is separate from the three operating/investing/financing subtotals and from P&L FX.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
Exchange-rate effect on cash (FY2023–FY2025)
A$ million
| Metric | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exchange-rate effect on cash | (36.199) | (22.550) | 0.603 |
Outside the operating, investing and financing subtotals; distinct from P&L FX and OCI translation.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
Equity funding (FY2021–FY2024)
A$ million
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reported share-issue cash line — see FY2024 cost note | 32.800 | 174.193 | 2.014 | 16.461 |
The share-issue line is FY2021–FY2024 only: FY2025 selected evidence reports a financing subtotal, not an equivalent standalone cash issue-proceeds row.
The reported lines are labelled net of transaction costs, but FY2024 additionally reports A$(1.570)m of share-issue costs separately. Its A$16.461m line must not be read as cash retained after every financing cost.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
FY2025 non-core E&E asset sale
A$ million
| Metric | FY2025 |
|---|---|
| Cash proceeds from E&E-asset sale | 13.622 |
| P&L gain on E&E-asset sale | 3.426 |
| E&E asset disposal in roll-forward | (10.165) |
Cash proceeds, P&L gain and roll-forward disposal are separately reported measures, not a netted sale result.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
FINANCIAL REVIEW / 04
Exploration accounting and development deployment
Capitalised additions and gross exploration cash payments fell to about A$5m in FY2025. The displayed carrying series is E&E alone through FY2023 and final E&E plus associated rehabilitation from FY2024, when that component is separately established; it is an accounting carrying measure, not resource value or project valuation.
Disposals, rehabilitation remeasurement and currency translation also move the carrying value. Capitalised rehabilitation and the provision are different: financing/unwinding charges can affect the liability through profit or loss without being identical additions to the exploration asset.
Capitalised exploration additions
A$ million
Capitalised direct exploration costs
AI-generated presentation · values from Exploration deployment and recent carrying-value movements; no missing values plotted as zero.
Exploration deployment and recent carrying-value movements
A$ million
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capitalised direct exploration costs | 4.911 | 23.497 | 66.523 | 37.565 | 5.236 |
| E&E carrying amount / incl. associated rehabilitation from FY2024 | 21.737 | 41.550 | 98.176 | 145.598 | 140.837 |
Capitalised additions and closing carrying value are not cash flows. Cash exploration payments appear once in the cash-flow table. The carrying series is E&E alone through FY2023 and includes separately established associated rehabilitation from FY2024.
FY2025 roll-forward disposal is A$(10.165)m; cash sale proceeds were A$13.622m and the P&L gain A$3.426m, each shown separately.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
Final Group E&E and associated rehabilitation (FY2024–FY2025)
A$ million
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|
| E&E translation movement | 7.121 | 2.436 |
| Capitalised rehabilitation component | 2.736 | 1.100 |
| Rehabilitation provision (liability) | 2.736 | 1.246 |
Final Group measure, not the FY2025 pre-rehabilitation E&E subtotal.
Source: Annual-report extractions; report editions are listed once in the consolidated source registry.
Reading the figures
- All displayed monetary series are explicit A$-million scaling of consolidated Group annual-extraction records; no currency conversion is made.
- FY2022 MEP/FX is sourced from the FY2023 comparative component disclosure to resolve a presentation change.
- E&E additions, cash payments, disposal accounting, sale proceeds and final carrying measure remain separate.
- FY2025 disclosed a material going-concern uncertainty and dependence on additional capital/cash-flow management; no funding or solvency forecast is made.
- Prepared from existing year-by-year extraction records only. No raw-source retrieval, database query, financial web research or MiniMax call. GPT review against saved extractions; not an independent original-document audit.
Annual-report source registry
- Lake Resources N.L. - Annual Report 2021Existing annual extraction, including separately identified historical comparatives.
- Lake Resources N.L. - Annual Report to shareholdersExisting annual extraction, including separately identified historical comparatives.
- Lake Resources N.L. - Annual Report to shareholdersExisting annual extraction, including separately identified historical comparatives.
- Lake Resources N.L. - Annual Report to shareholdersExisting annual extraction, including separately identified historical comparatives.
- Lake Resources N.L. - Annual Report to shareholdersExisting annual extraction, including separately identified historical comparatives.
Prepared solely from the existing year-by-year extraction datasets. No raw annual-report body, PDF, new database lookup or financial web research was used. Review is against those stored extractions, not a new independent original-document audit.
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AI-led method
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