RCS - Beowulf Mining PLC - Collaboration on Sustainable Graphite Technology

Beowulf MiningAnnouncement

28/04/2023 07:15

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RNS Number : 7893X  Beowulf Mining PLC  28 April 2023

 

 

28 April 2023

Beowulf Mining plc

("Beowulf" or the "Company")

Grafintec Collaborates on Sustainable Graphite Purification Technology

 

Beowulf (AIM: BEM; Spotlight: BEO), is pleased to announce that the Company's
wholly owned Finnish subsidiary Grafintec Oy ("Grafintec") has signed a
Memorandum of Understanding ("MoU") with Thermal & Material Engineering
Center ("TMEC") from Ukraine to establish a joint venture technology company
("JV").

TMEC has developed proprietary state-of-the-art purification technology, a
continuous thermal process which consumes significantly less energy than
conventional commercially available thermal solutions and eliminates the need
of hazardous chemicals when purifying graphite.

Grafintec and TMEC are seeking to apply the technology to both natural flake
and secondary sources of graphite, in conjunction with Grafintec's graphite
anode materials plant ("GAMP") development in the GigaVaasa area.  In
parallel, the first stage of process design work and Pre-Feasibility Study
("PFS") for the GAMP being undertaken by RB Plant Construction Ltd. ("RB
Plant") for Grafintec will conclude in May 2023.

Key Terms of the MoU

·    The Parties have agreed to collaborate through the development of a
European technology company for the supply under licence of commercial
processing technology services to natural and synthetic graphite producers
(including secondary sources of graphite), for the provision of commercial
testing services to graphite producers, and for the supply of engineering and
design activities for the technology, under commercial agreements within the
battery market supply chain.

·    Under the proposed JV, Grafintec will own 51 per cent of the JV and
TMEC will own 49 per cent of the JV.

·    Both Parties have agreed to work exclusively with each other related
to the use of the technology in the battery markets supply chain.

·    Grafintec will have the exclusive right to progress the formation of
a JV with TMEC, provided that certain terms set out in the MoU are met.

European Critical Raw Materials Act

On 16 March 2023, the European Commission published the 'European Critical Raw
Materials Act'. The Commission proposes a comprehensive list of actions for
the EU to access a secure, diversified, affordable, and sustainable supply of
Critical Raw Materials such as Natural Graphite to enable the green transition
and reduce its dependency on supply from certain countries.

Some of the more important actions includes simplifying and streamlining the
permitting process for Critical Raw Materials projects in the EU including
access to financial support and shorter permitting timeframes for strategic
mining, processing, and recycling projects.

 

Rasmus Blomqvist, Managing Director of Grafintec, commented:

"We are excited to be working with TMEC on incorporating their technology into
our plans for sustainable anode materials production in the GigaVaasa area.

"Testwork has shown that TMEC's purification technology in our commercial
plant design could deliver a step change in process performance, when
considering cost and sustainability factors.

"As the demands from battery manufacturers for low cost and low carbon
solutions increases, it is our objective to ensure the JV company will be a
leader in the market.

"Given the forecast market growth for Lithium-Ion Batteries and the lack of
commercial production of graphite anodes in Europe, the 'European Critical Raw
Materials Act' should focus the EU's efforts on strengthening its regional raw
material supply chains and presents a unique window of opportunity for
Grafintec to establish itself in the graphite anode space."

 

European Lithium-Ion Battery and Graphite Anode Market

Currently graphite, either natural or synthetic, counts for approximately 95
per cent of the anode market and due to its cost-performance ratio it will
remain the material of choice for anodes for the next decade. The World Bank
has said graphite demand will increase by 500 per cent between 2018 and 2050,
while the global graphite market is expected to reach US$21.6 billion. In
Europe the graphite anode market is expected to grow even faster with an
expected growth rate by more than eight times from a current level of 162,000
tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes of graphite anodes by 2030 (Benchmark Mineral
Intelligence, March 2023). Geopolitical tensions, the European Green
Transition, and a focus on sustainable and secure supply-chains, as well as
self-sufficiency, has led countries to re-assess their overreliance on Chinese
supply of strategic materials including graphite.

 

About Grafintec

Beowulf Mining's 100 per cent owned subsidiary Grafintec is recognised in
Finland as one of the main companies in the anode space and continues to be
supported by Business Finland, the Finnish governmental organisation for
innovation funding and investments.

The Company's most advance natural flake graphite project, Aitolampi, has an
Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource of 26.7 Mt at 4.8 per cent TGC for
1,275,000 tonnes of contained graphite (see announcement 30 October 2019),
possessing almost perfect crystallinity, an important prerequisite for high
tech applications such as lithium-ion batteries. The Mineral Resource was
estimated by CSA Global of Australia in accordance with the JORC Code, 2012
Edition. In addition to Aitolampi, the Company has other graphite exploration
prospects, including Rääpysjärvi.

The development of downstream capabilities is a key part of Grafintec's
strategy and following the announcement on 26 September 2022 on signing a MoU
with Hensen, the collaboration between the companies has proceeded with
regards to establishing an anode materials hub in Finland, the GAMP.

On 21 February Beowulf announced signing of a site reservation agreement with
the municipality of Korsholm, securing Plot 1, Block 3017 in the GigaVaasa
area, for the establishment of a Graphite Anode Materials Plant. The reserved
Plot 1 covers an area of approximately 47 hectares and is located immediately
to the south-southeast of the area where FREYR, the battery cell manufacturing
company, has secured land to develop industrial scale battery technology and
production (see FREYR Battery begins preparatory work in Vaasa, Finland |
Gigavaasa
(https://www.gigavaasa.fi/ajankohtaista/freyr-battery-begins-preparatory-work-in-vaasa-finland/)
).

About TMEC

TMEC is a Ukraine-based enterprise established as an R&D company by a
group of leading scientists with a long-term experience in engineering to
boost smart thermal solutions for industrial applications.

TMEC's history goes back to 2002 when the business started as a part of the
Department of Industrial Thermal Engineering at National Metallurgical Academy
of Ukraine.

To get closer to customers on the global market in 2018, TMEC evolved into an
independent company with a wide range of services from fundamental research to
full functioning up-scaled industrial products.

TMEC provides:

·      Innovations for petrochemical-, metallurgical- and mining
industries.

·      Engineering of Lab and Industrial Units with specific focus
on fluidized and fixed bed reactors.

·      Electro-thermal fluidized bed solutions.

·      Optimization of furnaces' operating modes.

·      Lab thermal treatment of carbon materials.

·      Energy management and audit.

·      Consulting and training services.

 

Enquiries:

 Beowulf Mining plc
 Kurt Budge, Chief Executive Officer        Tel: +44 (0) 20 7583 8304
 SP Angel

 (Nominated Adviser & Broker)
 Ewan Leggat / Stuart Gledhill / Adam Cowl  Tel: +44 (0) 20 3470 0470
 BlytheRay
 Tim Blythe / Megan Ray                     Tel: +44 (0) 20 7138 3204

 

Cautionary Statement

Statements and assumptions made in this document with respect to the Company's
current plans, estimates, strategies and beliefs, and other statements that
are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements about the future
performance of Beowulf. Forward-looking statements include, but are not
limited to, those using words such as "may", "might", "seeks", "expects",
"anticipates", "estimates", "believes", "projects", "plans", strategy",
"forecast" and similar expressions. These statements reflect management's
expectations and assumptions in light of currently available information. They
are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited
to , (i) changes in the economic, regulatory and political environments in the
countries where Beowulf operates; (ii) changes relating to the geological
information available in respect of the various projects undertaken; (iii)
Beowulf's continued ability to secure enough financing to carry on its
operations as a going concern; (iv) the success of its potential joint
ventures and alliances, if any; (v) metal prices, particularly as regards iron
ore. In the light of the many risks and uncertainties surrounding any mineral
project at an early stage of its development, the actual results could differ
materially from those presented and forecast in this document. Beowulf assumes
no unconditional obligation to immediately update any such statements and/or
forecasts.

 

 

 

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