Ian Ross reports that the Toronto Great Lakes Graphite is pouring $800,000 into a refit of a shuttered micronization plant in Matheson to begin processing graphite flake for customers in the U.S. Midwest by 2016. The currently mothballed crushing mill will be processing flake graphite imported from South America. Great Lakes Graphite has struck a five-year agreement with DNI Metals to procure graphite from Brazil for shipment to the northeastern Ontario plant.
The company has a facilities-use agreement for five years with the mill owner, Northfill Resources, with the option for another five, to crush flake graphite into fine powder, according to customer specifications. The graphite would arrive by ship in Montreal and then be railed the rest of the way to Matheson, the last leg on the Ontario Northland Railway.
Company CEO Paul Gorman calls graphite the new black gold as a natural carbon with many properties well suited for a variety of industrial uses, such as manufacturing batteries, steel and lubricants for the automotive and electrical sectors. Most of the graphite used in North America comes from China. Beijing imposes huge tariffs on graphite exports and there is always the looming threat of China curtailing supply to use for their own needs.
Graphite has become a critical component in making lithium-ion batteries used in electric cars. Gorman is particularly eyeballing Tesla Motors plans to build a $5 billion lithium-ion battery Gigafactory next year in the U.S. West. It could skyrocket the demand for graphite, and Gorman wants his company to be among the first North American suppliers to cater to high-tech companies.
Also see: http://i2mconsultants.com/downloads/corp/CampbellJustNotforBurning-July19-2014Col.pdf
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