- Syrah Resources (SYR) has produced anode precursor material from its Battery Anode Material (BAM) facility in Vidalia, Louisiana
- This marks an important milestone for Syrah’s strategy to become a global producer of Active Anode Material (AAM) from natural graphite
- Currently, China produces all natural graphite anode precursor material for the production of lithium-ion batteries
- Syrah is positioning the BAM Project to produce AAM that has better physical and electrochemical properties than current standards.
- The company also plans to supply AAM that is cost-competitive and environmentally friendlier
- Company shares are up 11.7 per cent and are trading for 33.5 cents each
Syrah Resources (SYR) has produced anode precursor material to battery specification from its Battery Anode Material (BAM) facility in Vidalia, Louisiana.
This marks a significant milestone for Syrah’s strategy to become the first vertically-integrated producer, outside of China, of Active Anode Material (AAM) from natural graphite.
Currently, China produces 100 per cent of natural graphite anode precursor material for the production of lithium-ion batteries for the electric vehicle industry.
Both synthetic and natural graphite can be used to produce an anode precursor for the global battery market. However, natural graphite enables higher capacity at a lower cost.
Importantly, natural graphite has a smaller environmental footprint than synthetic graphite which is made from the by-product of coking and oil refinery processes.
The BAM Project is focused on establishing production lines that can supply markets outside of Asia with AAM that has equivalent or better physical and electrochemical properties than currently available material. The company also plans to supply AAM that is cost-competitive and environmentally friendlier.
The facility site in Vidalia has strategic access to key utilities and nearby barge and port access to the Mississippi river for the potential transport of natural graphite feedstock from the Port of New Orleans to Vidalia in the future.
The current operating plant includes a 5000 tonnes per annum capacity of graphite milling, batch scale purification capability of 200 tonnes per annum and all ancillary plant required to demonstrate the capability to scale the facility.
According to Benchmark Minerals Intelligence, natural graphite is estimated to account for around 39 per cent of total anode production in 2020 and expects that proportion will increase to 49 per cent by 2025.
Syrah Resources’ high-performance, next generation AAM products are currently in development and a patent application process is currently in progress.
Company shares are up 11.7 per cent and are trading for 33.5 cents each at 2:05 pm AEST.