Richland Resources (LON:RLD) continues, with other parties, to seek a binding agreement over a graphite joint venture in Tanzania.
A six month extension has been granted to the exclusivity period previously given to Australia listed Kibaran Resources by the 50:50 joint venture between Richland and the State Mining Corporation of Tanzania, the gemstone specialist said Friday.
The exclusivity period will now run to February 5 next year to allow the parties to finalise an agreement.
The move could potentially consolidate Richland's Arusha graphite project with Kibaran's neighbouring Merelani-Arusha project.
Richland's tanzanite mining operations previously hosted a graphite mine, while its subsidiary, TanzaniteOne Mining, has a 15,000 tonnes annually (tpa) graphite processing plant and associated infrastructure.
The plant was closed in the late 1990s due to a switch in focus to the production of tanzanite.
Kibaran has estimated that the global demand for commercial graphite is growing, boosted by an increasing number of applications for graphite in technology and industry, and is expected to double within the next eight years.
Richland shares are unchanged at 3.25p.