Replying to an ASX query, the company said it was paying for its share of the pilot spherical graphite mill out of existing cash reserves while the project partners will pay their share. The objective of the acquisition of the spherical graphite mill is to supply lithium ion battery (LiB) manufacturers with a fully qualified test product.
It is planned to produce LiB grade spherical graphite from natural graphite from future mining operations proposed at the company’s Balama Central and Montepuez Central graphite deposits in Mozambique.
Metals of Africa has defined a resource of 16.3 million tonnes at its Balama Central project grading 10.4% total graphitic carbon (TGC) while at Montepuez it has estimated a resource of 61.6 million tonnes at 10.3% TGC. The company is partnering with a total of 5 companies in this collaborative venture. The production of Coated Spherical Purified Graphite (C-SPG) is a critical step in the production of anode-ready material that is used in lithium ion batteries. The purchase of this mill will enable end-to-end production of C-SPG within North America. C-SPG is processed into battery ready anode material for end users.
Montepuez
“VTEM in conjunction with trenching has confirmed the presence of outcropping graphite over a cumulative strike length of approximately 4km.”
Montepuez – Metals of Africa
“Figure 4 provides the Inferred and Indicated Mineral Resource polygon for the Buffalo prospect with a simplified surface geology map showing a large area to the west of mapped graphitic schist which is yet to be drill tested and is co-incident with a VTEM conductor target. Further field mapping and trenching is required over larger portions of the VTEM conductor target areas to prioritise the best drill target areas for testing in 2016.”
Montepuez – Metals of Africa
