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Graphex Technologies, a midstream company that takes natural flake graphite from mines and transforms it into anode material for electric cars, has entered into an offtake agreement for material produced from Syrah Resources’ Balama graphite operation in Mozambique.
The agreement, the company said, will provide Graphex with a diverse supply of raw materials in line with its plans to bring domestic processing facilities online to supply automakers and battery gigafactories with the needed anode material for electric vehicle batteries.
In June, Graphex’s graphite processing facility in Warren secured the environmental permit from the Air Quality Division of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy. The company said it was a step forward in its strategy to supply the North American market.
Graphex Technologies is a wholly owned US subsidiary of Graphex Group (NYSE: GRFX), a Cayman Island company which already has a self-contained graphite processing ecosystem in China.
Demand for EVs continues to rise with recent reports which forecast that more than 14 million EV’s will be sold by the end of 2023 alone – a 35% year-on-year increase.
The incentives included in the US Inflation Reduction Act for new EVs with domestically sourced and/or processed components are anticipated to further catapult demand through 2030 when 50% of all new car sales are expected to be electric.
Balama is the largest natural graphite operation outside of China, with a production capacity of 350,000 metric tons per year and a 50-plus-year life underpinned by a globally significant high grade natural graphite reserve and resource.
“This agreement with Syrah could change the graphite game in North America,” Graphex Technologies CEO John DeMaio said in the statement. “Connecting Syrah’s volume with our experience and ongoing build-out of domestic processing capacity in North America represents a giant leap forward in meeting the demand for high-quality, high-volume, US IRA-compliant graphite anode material in the EV and renewable energy industries.”
“Securing significant sources of quality raw materials from well-established companies and mine assets such as Syrah and its Balama graphite operation, ensures that Graphex can meet the growing needs of OEMs now and into the future. Whenever you can solve an industry-level problem, everyone wins, including the public,” he added.
Graphex plans to process the graphite acquired from the Balama graphite operation at the company’s future North American facilities, potentially including its Michigan facility. These are expected to deliver up to 15,000 metric tons per year of coated purified spherical graphite beginning in 2024, and additional facilities that are planned to be brought online as demand increases.
Graphex’s planned offtake relationships and potential partnerships include graphite assets in Canada and Namibia with Northern Graphite, in Australia with Reforme Group, in Brazil and US with SouthStar Battery Metals, in Tanzania and Ukraine with Volt Resources, and in Namibia and Brazil with Gratomic.
