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Australian miners progressing Mozambique projects

22nd May 2015

By: Keith Campbell

Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

  

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Australian Securities Exchange-listed miner Triton Minerals has announced that it has created two binding joint venture (JV) projects with specialist Chinese graphite products business Yichang Xincheng Graphite Company (YXGC). Triton is currently developing the Ancuabe, Balama North and Balama South graphite projects, in the Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique.

Triton currently holds 60% in each of the three projects. In all cases, it has the option to increase this to 80% once production starts. Ancuabe, the company states, is “[w]orld renowned for jumbo flake”. Balama North contains the Cobra Plains and Nicanda Hill prospects and Triton describes the latter as the “world’s largest flake graphite-vanadium resource”. Balama South will produce jumbo flake graphite. These projects are all still in the exploration stage. Currently, the company’s top priority is the development of the Nicanda Hill prospect, in Balama North, with Ancuabe in second place.

In its announcement of its JVs with YXGC, Triton stated it was “fast-tracking the development of its graphite mines in Mozambique with support from strategic partnerships, offtake agreements and potential funding partners”. The two JVs comprise a Mozambique JV and a China JV. Triton will hold 70% of the Mozambique JV and 49% of the China JV. Both JVs will produce graphite materials. The Mozambique JV will make flexible graphite sheet, high-value expandable graphite, refined battery-grade graphite and “other enhanced graphite products”. The China JV will, at first, focus on producing high-strength graphite composite sheets.

“The execution of these joint venture arrangements with Yichang Xicheng Graphite places Triton in a truly remarkable and unique market position,” highlighted Triton MD and CEO Brad Boyle in the company’s announcement. “Not only is Triton positioning itself to become a producer of high-quality graphite concentrate, through its TMG (Triton Mozambique Graphite) product, it is [also] planning to be directly involved in the production of very high value enhanced graphite products that will supply the electronics, technology and energy storage sectors, to name but a few, for future generations.” (The two JVs will use the TMG product exclusively.)

“Our company, the largest private producer of high-value expanded graphite products in China, which supplies products to some of the world’s most celebrated technology companies, is extremely pleased to enter into these binding arrangements with Triton,” affirmed YXGC chairperson Yue Bin in the announcement. “The long-term supply of high-quality TMG afforded to the new joint venture companies will allow both Triton and YXGC to develop and prosper from competitively priced enhanced graphite products destined for the global markets.”

Separately, and a day or so earlier, another Australian Securities Exchange-listed junior miner, Metals of Africa, announced that it had started a drilling programme to define the near-surface high-grade graphite resources at its Montepuez Central project, also in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province. (The company also holds exploration licences for Montepuez North and Montepuez East as well as Balama Central; all are held 100%. Note that there is also a Balama project, which is the property of yet another Australian Securities Exchange-listed company, Syrah Resources.)

The drilling campaign will total 5 000 m and succeeds the company’s first drilling programme, which took place in December and intersected high-grade graphite mineralisation zones. The aim of the new programme is to develop a resource estimate under the 2012 Australasian Joint Ore Reserves Committee (Jorc) code.

“Our first drill programme came up with the goods, including an oxide zone grading at 14.75% TGC (total graphitic content),” stated company MD Cherie Leeden in its announcement. “During the next few months of drilling, we are aiming to expand upon our database in order to define a maiden Jorc resource. “We are focused on delivering a shallow, high-grade oxide resource as the basis of progressing development of the project in the most cost-effective and time-efficient manner whilst delivering value for shareholders.”

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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