BlackEarth Minerals (ASX:BEM) reports that it is in the final stages of completing the Feasibility Study on its Maniry Graphite Project in Madagascar, putting it on track to release the findings later this month.
As part of the study completion process, BlackEarth Managing Director Tom Revy updated officials in Madagascar on the project (see below), late last month.
The meeting with the Minister of Mines and Strategic Resources, Dr Olivier Rakotomalala (left), who was appointed in March this year, served to bring the Minister up to date with the Maniry Project and the potential positive impact it will have on all stakeholders in Madagascar.
BlackEarth reports that apart from future community related projects, it was explained that the study will include all the key findings in respect to Maniry’s financial and technical outlook, including geology, metallurgy, processing, and marketing.
This will pave the way for BlackEarth to accelerate discussions around binding offtake contracts and secure final project development permits and approvals.
Today (4 October) Mining.com.au has published a special feature on BlackEarth outlining its strategy regarding Maniry and its plans to become a major vertically integrated natural graphite player in the global graphite supply chain.
The company’s share price had risen 11.363% as of 9am AWST.
Addressing the progress of Maniry, BlackEarth Managing Director Tom Revy commented: “Completion of the Maniry feasibility study will be a pivotal point for BlackEarth as it paves the way for execution of our three-pronged strategy to cash-in on the forecasted deficit of graphite production.
“Once the definitive feasibility study is finished, we will move quickly to secure binding offtake agreements which will in turn enable us to push ahead with project development”
Once the definitive feasibility study is finished, we will move quickly to secure binding offtake agreements which will in turn enable us to push ahead with project development.
We have a huge opportunity to benefit from the surge in graphite demand and prices which are expected to result from the ramp up of lithium battery production. Maniry is the cornerstone of our strategy and completion of the feasibility study will mark the start of the next chapter in our growth.”
Maniry, which has a Mineral Resource of 2.58 million tonnes of contained graphite (see ASX Release date 9 August 2022), is planning to commence construction in 2024.
This timing will enable BlackEarth to capitalise on the surge in graphite demand, which is widely forecast to occur due to the huge increase in production of lithium batteries and the lack of investment in new graphite projects. This is expected to result in a supply deficit from as early as next year.
BlackEarth has a three-pronged strategy to capitalise on the expected surge in graphite demand including Mining graphite ore at Maniry, with the aim of producing a series of concentrate products for downstream processing and sale to third parties; processing the concentrate fines mined at Maniry into battery anode material (BAM) for use in lithium batteries; and, producing expandable graphite from a portion of the coarse flake graphite concentrates produced at Maniry, for non-battery purposes.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: BlackEarth Minerals Ltd & iStock
