Australian company Ecograf (ASX:EGR) announces it has successfully used its graphite purification tech to recycle lithium-ion battery anode material in Germany.
As graphite comprises almost 50 per cent of a typical lithium-ion battery, “the successful trial represents a major step forward to support electric vehicle and battery manufacturers achieve sustainable, closed-loop manufacturing processes”, the company says.
Beginning of March, Ecograf said it had “in principle debt funding support” from the Australian government for a proposed $US72m ($110.2m) battery graphite purification plant in Kwinana, Perth. The proposed $US35m debt funding package would cover about 50 per cent of total construction costs, the company says.
Aspiring graphite producer BlackEarth Minerals (ASX:BEM) will move to the next stage of qualification testing with the world’s largest battery anode company, BTR New Energy. BTR has now requested a bigger graphite concentrate sample for evaluation.
“The sample endorsement given by BTR, as a global tier 1 natural graphite spheronising/anode producing company, highlights the focus and competencies BlackEarth is applying to this important (qualification) period of DFS development for its Maniry graphite project,” managing director Tom Revy says.