The Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price won't be going anywhere on Monday.
This follows the lithium miner's request for a trading halt prior to the market open this morning.
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Why is the Pilbara Minerals share price halted?
The Pilbara Minerals share price was placed in a trading halt today pending the release of an announcement.
The release explains that the announcement relates to the company entering into a strategic transaction concerning a downstream joint venture. No further details were provided.
Pilbara Minerals' shares are expected to remain halted until the commencement of trade on Wednesday.
What is the joint venture?
As I mentioned above, no further details were provided by the company.
However, it is worth noting that just over two years ago, Pilbara Minerals announced binding terms with South Korean conglomerate, POSCO, for the formation of an incorporated joint venture in South Korea to build and operate a 40ktpa LCE primary lithium hydroxide downstream chemical processing facility.
This joint venture was set to be founded on POSCO's industry leading "PosLX" purification technology. This produces high-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate chemicals.
It is also worth noting that in its recently released annual report, the company talks about the joint venture as a core part of its FY 2022 plan.
It states: "Negotiate and establish POSCO joint venture for the development and operation of a 40,000 tpa downstream lithium chemical conversion facility in South Korea supported by 315,000 tpa spodumene concentrate offtake."
All in all, if it is this, it has the potential to be a real milestone for the company. As such, it will make it well worth keeping a close eye on the Pilbara Minerals share price when it returns to trade on Wednesday.
