EcoGraf (ASX: EGR) has commenced the search for $168 million in funding after achieving a critical development milestone at its Epanko graphite project in Tanzania.
The company has commissioned German commercial bank KfW IPEX-Bank to undertake advisory, structuring and arranging services to obtain import credit cover and arrange a senior debt facility for the construction of the Epanko project.
The move comes after the Tanzanian government granted EcoGraf a life-of-mine special mining licence (SML) for Epanko.
The SML is a key regulatory permit required for the Epanko financing process and will provide EcoGraf with the necessary certainty to proceed.
The 25-year licence has almost doubled the Epanko mining area from 9.6 square kilometres to 18.9 sq km, with the expanded area covering a continuous 5.5km strike length of the graphite deposit where the orebody averages 200m in width.
Epanko is considered to be the largest development-ready graphite mineral resource in Africa, with an estimated 290.8 million tonnes at 7.2% total graphitic carbon, comprising 32.3Mt measured, 55.7Mt indicated and 202.8Mt inferred.
The Epanko ore reserve features an industry-leading 82% in the “proven” category.
EcoGraf believes the new SML will be sufficient to allow for a multi-generational operation at an expanded production capacity.
Plans are already underway to define a staged expansion pathway to achieve production and meet the forecast growth in demand for natural graphite anode material across the global electric mobility and clean energy storage markets.
The development pathway includes a mechanical shaping facility to create spherical graphite.
The midstream development will be the first value-adding graphite project in Tanzania and one of the first in Africa.
EcoGraf has obtained sales interest and is gaining support from the EU Commission following high-level meetings in Europe, Tanzania and South Africa.
The company expects its vertically integrated battery anode materials business using natural flake graphite Epanko will provide significant customer cost and environmental benefits.
EcoGraf has nearly completed an updated capital and operating cost estimate based on a preferred location that provides significant clean power and transport advantages.
In February, EcoGraf announced the successful operational campaign of its product qualification facility to produce high-purity EcoGraf HFfree spherical graphite on a continuous basis.
The facility will do so in accordance with battery anode manufacturers’ chemical specifications while preserving the important physical characteristics required for lithium battery applications.
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