Tirupati eyes 8% of global graphite market after Mozambique acquisitions

Waratah Minerals

27/07/2023 14:02

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      Growth in EV sales spurring graphite demand
    

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      Tirupati targets 400,000 tpa output by 2030
    

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      Seeks to profit from Western drive to reduce reliance on
China
    

  
    By Nelson Banya
       July 27 (Reuters) - Tirupati Graphite  TGRT.L  plans to
start producing 50,000 metric tons of graphite next year in
Mozambique, targeting 8% of global output by 2030, its executive
chairman has said.
    A critical material in the production of batteries used to
store energy and power electric vehicles, graphite is mostly
mined in China, Mozambique, Madagascar and Brazil.
    London-listed Tirupati acquired two graphite projects in
Mozambique at Montepuez and Balama from Australian exploration
firm Battery Minerals Ltd  BAT.AX  in April.
    It also has graphite mining and processing operations in
Madagascar, with a capacity to produce 30,000 tons annually.
    Electrical vehicle sales are expected to rise to 14 million
this year from 10 million in 2022, according to the
International Energy Agency, boosting demand for minerals used
in batteries such as graphite and lithium.
    After acquiring the Mozambican assets, Tirupati is on course
to start producing 50,000 tons of flake graphite a year at
Montepuez, Executive Chairman Shishir Poddar told Reuters in an
interview on Wednesday. 
    Tirupati aims to then ramp up production to 400,000 tons
annually from both Mozambique and Madagascar over seven years,
he added.
    The two Mozambican projects currently have permits to
produce 158,000 tons annually, but output would be expanded as
the global market grows, Poddar said.
    Poddar said global demand for graphite was expected to rise
threefold to 5 million tons by 2030.
    "This is a very challenging situation for the development of
capacity. From our side, we came to a conclusion that let us
target 8% of global demand as our capacity that we will develop
up to 2030," Poddar said.
    Tirupati was also positioning itself to benefit from the
push by Western governments to reduce reliance on China, which
currently dominates global battery mineral supplies, he said.
    The company currently sells graphite to the United States,
Europe, India and Japan.
    

 (Reporting by Nelson Banya; editing by Jason Neely)
 ((Nelson.Banya@thomsonreuters.com;))