Graphite juniors news in brief, April 4

A brief roundup of notable activity in the graphite industry, with news from Armadale Capital, Alba Mineral Resources, Archer Exploration, Black Rock Mining and Magnis Resources.

April 4, 2018

By the Fastmarkets team

Armadale Capital has completed a scoping study, carried out by third party BatteryLimits, on the Mahenge Liandu graphite project in Tanzania, based on a throughput of 400,000 tonnes per year over a 32-year mine life. The study forecast graphite production of 49,000 tpy, and an operating cost of $408 per tonne based on an average grade of 12.5% total graphitic carbon (TGC). As a whole, capital cost for the project is expected to be $35 million, with a pre-tax internal rate of return (IRR) of 122% and a payback period of 1.2 years. Scoping study manager Dave Pass said that the study delivers “robust project economics, warranting progress to the next phase of feasibility studies.”
Alba Mineral Resources has been granted a five-year renewal of its mining exploration license which comprises the Amitsoq graphite project in southern Greenland, with effect from 2018. Additionally, the government of Greenland has granted a 12-month moratorium on the exploration expenditure commitment related to the Amitsoq license, whose payment is now due in 2019. Alba is working to re-establish graphite mining at Amitsoq, which was in operation for a short time previously. The company currently owns 90% of the project. The next step toward development will be to initiate a bankable feasibility study to establish the economics of the project.
Archer Exploration has lodged a Draft Community Consultation Plan for the Eyre Peninsula graphite project in South Australia, following the grant of the mining lease by the local government late last year. The environmental approvals process is currently continuing for the operation, which the company aims to bring online with a view to sourcing graphite feedstocks to process into graphene products. Archer intends to supply graphene products to three main industrial fields – energy, human health and quantum technologies – and is developing graphene-based technologies that can be applied in these sectors.
Black Rock Mining has registered its Tanzanian subsidiary, Mahenge Resources Ltd, with the Tanzanian Investment Centre (TIC), Tanzania’s government-controlled agency to coordinate foreign investment into the country. The registration is expected to help streamline the permitting process for Black Rock’s graphite project in the Mahenge deposit. TIC registration also allows the company zero-rated VAT on exports, VAT deferment on project capital goods, and other business-friendly financial incentives. The company is meanwhile awaiting a response to the draft environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) that it lodged with Tanzania’s National Environment Management Council (NEMC).
Magnis Resources has acquired a 10% interest in US-based lithium-ion battery technology group Charge CCCV (C4V), for a total of $7.5 million. C4V is an intellectual property company based in New York and focused on lithium-ion battery materials composition and manufacturing, including the development of a semi-solid state design that will be ready for commercial production by 2025. As part of the terms of the stake acquisition, Magnis will have an exclusive agreement for five years over selected C4V patents, which will expand the company’s materials technologies in the lithium-ion battery sector.