Citigroup cuts copper forecast on tariffs risk, China outlook
The bank has cut its short-term outlook for copper prices by 11% to $8,500 a ton over the next three months.
Syrah Resources achieved record graphite production in 2022 and its Vidalia active anode plant in the US is on course for completion by the third quarter of this year, the Australia-based company said on Thursday.
Syrah operates the Balama graphite mine in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province and is one of the world’s biggest producers of graphite, a key component in cleaner transportation technolgies.
The company is building an 11,250 tonne per year graphite anode plant in Vidalia, Louisiana, to process graphite mined from Mozambique into anodes, the positively charged electrode of a battery.
Syrah said graphite production more than doubled to 163,000 tonnes in 2022, from 72,000 tonnes the year before, as improved recoveries and stable grades offset the impact of 41 days of industrial action at Balama between September and October.
The opening up of additional shipping capacity at Pemba port helped Syrah overcome container shortages at Nacala port, also helping lift production.
The increased production drove Syrah’s revenues to $106.2 million in 2022, up from $29 million the year before. However, soaring costs, mainly from mining inflation and logistics, meant the increased sales only helped Syrah narrow its net loss to $26.8 million last year, from $56.9 million in 2021.
Syrah said the Vidalia plant on schedule, with 99% of engineering works completed by the end of 2022.
The plant positions Syrah as an alternative supplier of graphite anode material to the US and Europe, which currently rely on supplies from China.
Syrah has a firm offtake deal with Tesla Inc for the supply of 8,000 tonnes of graphite anode material from the first phase of the Vidalia plant and an option for an additional 17,000 tonnes after the plant’s planned upgrade to 45,000 tonnes annual output.
Syrah also has agreements with a Ford Motor Co joint venture with South Korea’s SK On as well as LG Energy Solution for future anode material supplies from the Louisiana plant.
(By Nelson Banya; Editing by Mark Potter)
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