Tirupati Graphite PLC (LON:TGR) said its Tirupati Graphene and Mintech Research Centre (TGMRC), which is focused on graphene manufacturing, graphene applications development and minerals processing technology development, has secured its first commercial contract.
The graphite specialist said the contract involves the provision of mineral processing technology development services to mining firm Optiva Resources to develop mineral processing technology solutions for the Vanadium, Titanium, Magnetite (VTM) deposits at its Marela project in Guinea.
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Under the contract, Tirupati said TGMRC will conduct a technical feasibility study for developing a process to extract sellable concentrate from VTM deposits for an upfront fee, the successful development of which will entitle the company a 5% equity in Optiva with an additional right to subscribe for an amount equal to 5% warrants.
The firm added that post the success of lab-scale process development, the contract parties intend to further their cooperation to pilot-scale studies, engineering and designs of a commercial operation.
Tirupati said the deal is the first contract it expects to engage in and that it is in “ongoing discussions with various prospective clients”.
"This engagement with [Optiva] represents another start of first revenues from the third business unit of the Company; the other two are already revenue-generating”, Tirupati chief executive Shishir Poddar said in a statement.
“While we continue to progress on the graphene developments, the start of revenue generation from our MINTECH centre of excellence at TGMRC aligns with our strategy of obtaining early-stage diversified and independent revenue streams across our three business units. We are confident that with our mineral processing expertise and innovative approach, we will reach a solution for [Optiva] to unlock the full potential of the VTM deposits in Marela", the CEO added.
Tirupati shares jumped 3.6% to 78.2p in early deals on Friday.