Recent developments from China’s Ministry of Commerce concerning export permits on critical graphite products have sent ripples through the financial markets. Graphite, indispensable for electric vehicle (EV) batteries, is now under tighter control by China, a country that dominates its global production.

Troy Grant of Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. (TSXV: ERA) highlights,

“Graphite content in an electric vehicle exceeds the demand for any other critical mineral fivefold. We’ve observed China make similar business maneuvers with rare earths, germanium, gallium, and now graphite. This trajectory was anticipated. While I concur with CMI’s Jack Lifton on lithium or cobalt possibly being next, we shouldn’t overlook vanadium.”

According to Critical Minerals Institute (CMI) Director Matt Bohlsen out of Australia early AM,

“The EV boom is creating a surge in demand for graphite… Each fully electric car battery has between 60-100kgs of graphite. China’s proposed ‘export permits’ will likely lead to a shortage of spherical and synthetic graphite outside of China, underscoring the world’s vulnerability to China’s supply disruption of critical minerals.”

Investors are now unquestionably watching stocks that might benefit the global market in light of the challenges presented by yet another China C Critical Mineral export ban. Here are five stocks that we were researching this morning (listed by market cap):

1: Syrah Resources Limited (ASX: SYR) – Market Cap: AUD$307.53M* — Syrah is an Australian Securities Exchange listed industrial minerals and technology company with its flagship Balama Graphite Operation in Mozambique and a downstream Active Anode Material Facility in the United States. Syrah’s vision is to be the world’s leading supplier of superior quality graphite and anode material products, working closely with customers and the supply chain to add value in battery and industrial markets.

2: Talga Group Ltd. (ASX: TLG) – Market Cap: AUD$353.53M* — Talga Group Ltd. is building a European battery materials supply chain to offer products critical to the green transition. Talga’s innovative technology and vertical integration of 100% owned Swedish graphite resources provides security of supply and creates additional value for stakeholders.

3: Zentek Ltd. (NASDAQ: ZTEK | TSXV: ZEN) – Market Cap: USD$128.24M*

Zentek is an ISO 13485:2016 certified intellectual property technology company focused on the research, development and commercialization of novel products seeking to give the Company’s commercial partners a competitive advantage by making their products better, safer, and greener.

Zentek’s patented technology platform ZenGUARD™, is shown to have 99-per-cent anti-microbial activity and to significantly increase the bacterial and viral filtration efficiency of both surgical masks and HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems. Zentek’s ZenGUARD™ production facility is located in Guelph, Ontario.

Zentek has a global exclusive license to the Aptamer-based platform technology developed by McMaster University which is being jointly developed Zentek and McMaster for both the diagnostic and therapeutic markets.

Zentek is also the 100% owner of Albany Graphite Corp. (AGC).  AGC’s recently filed 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate shows circa 1,000,000 tonnes of graphite in Ontario.  Importantly, that graphite is volcanic of origin, and globally unique. It is expected that graphite from AGC will perform better in EV batteries than other materials because of the volcanic origin.

4: Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. (NYSE: NMG | TSXV: NOU) – Market Cap: USD$159.6M*

Nouveau Monde Graphite is striving to become a key contributor to the sustainable energy revolution. The Company is working towards developing a fully integrated source of carbon-neutral battery anode material in Québec, Canada, for the growing lithium-ion and fuel cell markets. With enviable ESG standards, NMG aspires to become a strategic supplier to the world’s leading battery and automobile manufacturers, providing high-performing and reliable advanced materials while promoting sustainability and supply chain traceability.

5: Northern Graphite Corporation (TSXV: NGC | OTCQB: NGPHF) – Market Cap: CAD$28.6M*

Northern is a Canadian, TSX Venture Exchange listed company that is focused on becoming a world leader in producing natural graphite and upgrading it into high value products critical to the green economy including anode material for Lithium-Ion batteries/EVs, fuel cells and graphene, as well as advanced industrial technologies.

Northern is the only graphite producing company in North America and will become the third largest producer outside of China when its Namibian operations come back online. The Company has the large scale Bissett Creek development project in Ontario that will be a source of continued production growth in the future.  All projects have “battery quality” graphite and are located close to infrastructure in politically stable jurisdictions.

(*) Market cap figures were sourced from the ASX, TSX, and Yahoo Finance Boards as of market opening on Friday, October 20, 2023. The listed market caps are in millions.

Amid these market shifts, it is pivotal for investors to stay updated and understand the dynamics affecting graphite and related stocks in the critical minerals sector. As China tightens its control over graphite exports, these companies and the wider EV sector will be in sharp focus, making it a space to watch closely in the coming months.

Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. (TSXV: ERA) (“Elcora”) is a relatively new manganese ore producer and has other battery material projects containing vanadium, graphite, and copper located in Morocco and Canada. Elcora also has exposure to anode materials and graphene. Demand for manganese remains strong both for the steel industry, but also for lithium-ion batteries containing manganese, typically used for electric vehicles.

Elcora’s goal is to be a globally competitive extractor and processor of battery-grade minerals and metals. They plan to do this by becoming a vertically integrated battery materials company and use their cost-effective process to purify high-quality battery metals and minerals that are commercially scalable.

How Elcora is anticipating and responding to the Global Energy Revolution

Source: Elcora Advanced Materials company presentation

Manganese production has started in Morocco and new orders are rolling in

As announced in June 2023, Elcora delivered its first manganese order of 500 metric tons of 37%+ high-quality manganese from their Morocco Mine. Elcora owns the Atlas Fox Project in Morocco, which includes the Beni Mellal Manganese Deposit/Mine and the Ouarzazate Project (includes the Omar Mine). Elcora plans to rapidly ramp up their manganese production from these projects with an 8-12 month production target of 20,000 tonnes per month of 37% manganese ore.

As announced on July 6, 2023, Elcora has secured two more orders for a total of 1,500 metric tons of 37%+ manganese ore set to be delivered by the end of July 2023, thereby securing sales revenue for the second month in a row for Elcora.

Vanadium production plans with sales potentially as soon as only 6 months away

Elcora is currently developing their Atlas Lion Vanadium Project in Morocco.

Elcora announced in June 2023 the completion of the first phase of vanadinite comminution testing. The result was 8.9% vanadium concentrate. Elcora then began shipping bulk samples for trial tests in smelters in Asia and Europe, and if results come back positive Elcora say they could potentially have concentrate sales revenue in as quick as 6 months.

The short-term plan is to build a semi-mobile concentrator plant to produce a 46% lead (“Pb”) and 9%+ vanadium (“V”) concentrate, with a ramp up to 2,500t/month of concentrate production. Elcora’s mid-term plan is to build a hydrometallurgical plant scheduled to produce 1,500 t/year of 99.99% V and 15,000t/year 99.99% Pb.

Elcora’s graphite products

In addition to manganese, vanadium and lead; Elcora has developed the technology to produce flake graphite, advanced natural graphite anode powder and graphene. Elcora states:

“Elcora has developed a unique low-cost effective process to make commercially scalable graphite nanomaterials ranging from micro-graphite to graphene.”

Flake graphite and anode powder are in growing demand for electric vehicles and energy stationary storage where the graphite is used in the anode part of the battery. Graphene has numerous potential uses and is known as a new wonder material.

Elcora states:

“Elcora has been structured to become a vertically integrated graphite & graphene company that mines, processes, refines graphite, and produces both the graphene and end graphene applications. Elcora’s graphene production system is suitable for use with many different graphite sources and has produced industry-leading quality graphene.“

Closing remarks

Elcora is executing well on their plans to become a vertically integrated battery materials company. Elcora already has a strong history within the flake graphite, anode powder, and graphene sectors.

Near-term catalysts will be further sales revenue of manganese concentrate from their Moroccan Mine and potentially good news on their vanadium concentrate smelting trials. Looking out a year or so from now Elcora should potentially have ramped up their vanadium concentrate production to 20,000t/month and vanadium concentrate to 2,500t/month. Beyond that, the plan is to potentially produce a final product via more processing thereby value adding to their current situation.

Elcora Advanced Materials trades on a market cap of only C$6 million. Exciting times for Elcora, especially if they can continue to execute well and bring in growing revenues in 2023.

During an interview between Troy Grant, Founder, CEO and Director of Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. (TSXV: ERA), and Tracy Weslosky from InvestorIntel, several key points were discussed surrounding Elcora’s manganese and vanadium milestones towards production. Troy confirmed that Elcora is currently selling manganese and has successfully shipped trial shipments to two customers. Preparing for shipments to four additional customers, Elcora’s ultimate goal is to become a fully vertically integrated battery material supplier.

Troy emphasized the importance of their manganese assets in Morocco and their aim to generate cash flow from them. The demand for manganese is strong, and they are focused on meeting that demand as quickly as possible. He explained that the percentage of manganese in the product determines its pricing, with higher percentages commanding higher prices. Elcora’s target is to build a production plant capable of producing 20,000 tons of manganese per month. They estimate that it will take 8 to 12 months to reach this level of production.

The discussion also touched upon Elcora’s vanadium production. Troy mentioned that they have been working with Dr. Ian Flint to complete a preliminary assessment on their vanadium assets in Morocco. The initial test results for their vanadium concentrate product are positive, and they are currently testing it with smelters in Europe and Asia. If the results are encouraging, they could start generating cash flow from vanadium production within six months.

Troy expressed optimism about the future, stating that they expect encouraging news regarding vanadium production and the commissioning of the manganese production plant in the next quarter. Overall, Troy’s update showcased Elcora’s progress and their focus on meeting the demand for manganese and exploring the potential of vanadium production for the Company.

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About Elcora Advanced Materials Corp.

Elcora was founded in 2011 and has been structured to become a vertically integrated battery material company. Elcora can process, refine, and produce battery related minerals and metals. As part of the vertical integration strategy Elcora has developed a cost-effective process to purify high-quality battery metals and minerals that are commercially scalable. This combination means that Elcora has the tools and resources for vertical integration of the battery minerals and metals industry.

To know more about Elcora Advanced Materials Corp., click here

Disclaimer: Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. is an advertorial member of InvestorIntel Corp.

This interview, which was produced by InvestorIntel Corp. (IIC) does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all the material information concerning the “Company” being interviewed. IIC offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This presentation may contain“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken,  as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on Sedar.com and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

If you have any questions surrounding the content of this interview, please contact us at +1 416 792 8228 and/or email us direct at [email protected].

Recently I heard Troy Grant President, CEO & Director from Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. (TSXV: ERA | OTCQB: ECORF) (“Elcora”) speak at the Critical Minerals Summit in Toronto hosted by the CMI. Having followed Elcora since 2013, I was reminded of what an inciteful business leader Troy is. Participating on a panel titled Dealing with the Resource Challenge. The Critical Minerals Shortage, I quickly confirmed that manganese is listed on the critical minerals list for the USA, Canada, and Australia and prepared this summary on where Elcora is today.

Elcora has been structured to become a vertically integrated battery materials company. As part of the vertical integration strategy, Elcora has developed a cost-effective process to purify high-quality battery metals and minerals that are commercially scalable.

Focused on extracting plus refining battery raw materials to produce high-value end products in the battery supply chain, the three key battery metals that Elcora is involved in are graphite, manganese, and vanadium. They also have exposure to anode materials and graphene.

Ragedara Graphite Mine, Ragedara Processing Facility, and anode powder producer

Elcora holds a 40% position in the Ragedara Graphite Mine 3 hour’s drive from Colombo, Sri Lanka. Elcora states “at the present time, the mine could produce and yield about 500 tonnes of graphite per year.” The Mine is an underground mine with high graphite grades in the form of high-purity aggregates of crystals.

The Company’s first graphite processing plant is located near the Ragedara mine in Sri Lanka. This facility performs 4 refining activities: grinding, flotation, dewatering, and product load-out. The fully refined graphite has a purity of over 99% and size range between 5 microns to 1 millimeter.

Elcora’s processes require no acids or alkaline systems and result in no environmentally damaging productions, by products or waste. This makes Elcora one of the most environmentally friendly graphite producers.

Investors can view a video showing the Ragedara Graphite Mine and Processing Facility here.

Elcora also aims to be increasingly vertically integrated and has already developed proprietary processes that produce high quality anode powder for lithium-ion battery anodes. Elcora also produce graphene at their Canadian subsidiary (Graphene Corp.) R&D facility located in Canada. These are higher value specialty materials with a rapidly rising demand profile.

Atlas Fox Manganese Deposit in Morocco

Elcora 100% owns the 16 km² Ermazon Manganese concession which holds the Atlas Fox Manganese Deposit. As announced on November 15, 2022, Elcora is now preparing a mining plan for manganese production. The exciting part is the high manganese grades, where manganese masses were recently tested and resulted in between 16% and 50% grades, with an average grade of 34%. The Deposit is easily accessible for surface deposit mining with the mining area accessible via public road. The mining method will initially be open pit, the production potential run rate at the Atlas Fox Deposit is thought to be approximately 2,500 metric tonnes/month.

Elcora stated: “Heavy machinery and production equipment are already being shipped on-site. The Atlas Fox Deposit had been mined until the mid-fifties when the French rule in Morocco came to an end leaving on-site about 40 extracted Manganese ore piles and numerous surface veins and pits……..Our local Moroccan team is diligently working on getting the last Government requirements with the objective to start production before the end of 2022.” That certainly is a fast moving mining plan.

Atlas Lion Vanadinite Polymetallic Deposit

Elcora owns 17 polymetallic/vanadium licenses over 304 km², which include a former vanadium mine, at their Atlas Lion Vanadinite Polymetallic Deposit in Morocco. All polymetallic research licenses contain the mineral vanadinite, which contains high levels of lead, vanadium and traces of cobalt, copper, tantalum and other metals.

On June 14, 2022 Elcora announced a first resource report for their Atlas Lion Vanadinite Polymetallic Deposit. The announcement stated: “The three structures were identified over a length of 2.5km representing a total of 772.000 tonnes of Mineral of which 463.000 tonnes account as indicated resources and 309.000 tonnes of inferred resources according to National Instrument 43-101. The fourteen (14) tested samples results averaged 36,52% Lead (Pb) and 4,125% Vanadium (V) with a maximum of 50,76% Pb and 6,66% V.”

Closing remarks

Elcora offers investors exposure to graphite production and potential near term production of manganese and vanadium. All three are key elements in the various types of batteries such as lithium-ion and vanadium redox flow. They are also key metals involved in the steel industry, meaning the demand drivers are at least twofold. Elcora is also already able to produce downstream value-added products such as anode materials and graphene.

Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. trades on a market cap of only C$7.5 million. Definitely a company that should be on investor’s radar.

In this InvestorIntel interview, Tracy Weslosky secures an update on battery material and graphite technology company Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. (TSXV: ERA | OTCQB: ECORF). Starting with an update on the Atlas Fox Deposit, Founder, CEO and Director Troy Grant explains that as soon as the production license for this manganese project in Morocco is received production will begin immediately.

Explaining how manganese production may commence by the end of the year, Troy discusses the timeline as it relates to revenue for Elcora. Additional discussions include the general critical minerals market, and how the Company intends to use the recently closed private placement proceeds. Troy updates the InvestorIntel.com audience with a further update on the objective to initiate the ore production on the Vanadinite (Vanadium and Lead) concessions as soon as the Exploitation licenses have been granted.

To access the full InvestorIntel interview, click here

Don’t miss other InvestorIntel interviews. Subscribe to the InvestorIntel YouTube channel by clicking here.

About Elcora Advanced Materials Corp.

Elcora was founded in 2011 and has been structured to become a vertically integrated battery material company. Elcora can process, refine, and produce battery related minerals and metals. As part of the vertical integration strategy Elcora has developed a cost-effective process to purify high-quality battery metals and minerals that are commercially scalable. This combination means that Elcora has the tools and resources for vertical integration of the battery minerals and metals industry.

To know more about Elcora Advanced Materials Corp., click here

Disclaimer: Elcora Advanced Materials Corp. is an advertorial member of InvestorIntel Corp.

This interview, which was produced by InvestorIntel Corp. (IIC) does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all the material information concerning the “Company” being interviewed. IIC offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This presentation may contain“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken,  as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on Sedar.com and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

If you have any questions surrounding the content of this interview, please contact us at +1 416 792 8228 and/or email us direct at [email protected].