Applied Graphite Technologies Corporation (TSX-V:AGT) (AGT), the mining company, announced it has purchased the Queen’s Mine in Sri Lanka, a past-producing graphite property.
Queen’s Mine is located between AGT’s Dodangaslanda graphite properties and will therefore be combined to create the Queens Mine Complex.
The mine’s former operator was reported to have been extracting 20 tonnes from high-grade graphite veins per month, with plans to expand this to 3,000 tonnes per year.
Access to underground workings shows at least six graphite veins over a total width of 25 metres, with some reaching as thick as 0.4 metres.
Lab testing by the former operator found testing of its run-of-mine tonnes consisted of high-grade graphite higher than 95 Cg, with vein graphite direct from the mine selling for US$2,000 per tonne.
Run-of-mine vein graphite, when upgraded to battery-quality graphite, is expected to be worth between US$8,000 and US$12,000 per tonne.
"We are extremely pleased to have acquired the QMC, thanks to our strategic in-country relationships," said Don Baxter, CEO at AGT.
"From my experience with multiple OEMs regarding battery-ready graphite, they want to see the ability to produce large tonnages for their battery requirements.
“The QMC will enable us to plan near-term operations to illustrate potential from our properties to satisfy OEM requirements."