Volt Resources Ltd (ASX:VRC) has taken the next step in becoming a battery materials manufacturer in the United States as well as Europe, after test work confirmed Volt’s graphite is suitable for use in the production of battery-ready anode material.
Volt’s proprietary battery anode material process flowsheet enables high yields of about 70% purified spheroidal graphite to be produced from graphite feedstock.
The graphite is sourced from the company’s integrated supply chain, which consists of a producing mine and processing plant in Ukraine, as well as the development-ready Bunyu graphite project in Tanzania.
Flowsheet design leverages by-product
Volt has taken advantage of flexibility in US technology partner American Energy Technologies Co’s inverted flowsheet design to produce non-spherical graphite as a by-product of the main material production.
The company says the development of non-spherical graphite products for the alkaline and lead-acid battery markets will improve the economics of Volt’s planned battery anode material (BAM) facilities in the United States and Europe.
Volt will also engage in performance testing in traditional battery systems with direct oversight from the company’s offtake partner, which operates in the lead-acid battery market.
Similarly, a joint development agreement is progressing with advanced alkaline battery producer Urban Electric Power, designed to improve alkaline battery performance with plans to enter into an offtake agreement.
About Volt Resources
Based in Perth, Western Australia, Volt Resources is focused on the exploration and development of its wholly-owned graphite and gold projects in Tanzania and Guinea, as well as its 70% interest in the ZG Group in Ukraine.
The ZG Group graphite business operates a long-life graphite mine and processing plant with nameplate capacity of up to 30,000 tonnes per annum, producing graphite products across the range.
It is in close proximity to key markets with significant developments in lithium-ion battery (LIB) facilities planned to service the European-based car makers and renewable energy sector.
The Bunyu Graphite Project is the largest graphite resource in Tanzania, East Africa, and is being developed in two stages, with the feasibility study for Stage 1 completed in 2018 and the Stage 2 expansion based on a prefeasibility study that was released in 2016.
The Guinea gold projects consist of three projects named Kouroussa, Mandiana and Konsolon, covering 388 square kilometres in the richly mineralised Birimian Greenstone Belt in West Africa.