JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Graphite producer Volt Resources has entered into an agreement with an unnamed Southern Africa-based mining services company to expedite the production of graphite samples from its Namangale deposit, in Tanzania, under strict commercial conditions.

ASX-listed Volt explained on Tuesday that it was a cost-effective way to source high-quality samples from a well-established group and to provide typical Namangale concentrate products to memorandum of understanding (MoU) partners and prospective customers for evaluation.

“The key rationale behind this strategy is to ensure that when a prospective customer requests a sample, the turnaround time is fast. Processing samples in Southern Africa obviates the need to send large quantities of ore to Australia or other destinations for processing in to graphite concentrate samples,” the company said in a statement.

Further, it demonstrates to the prospective customer that Volt can produce high-quality graphite concentrate samples relatively cheaply in Southern Africa, using a simple crushing and flotation process.

The service provider Volt has engaged has been undertaking testwork, and metallurgical and mineral processing services for several decades for numerous blue-chip multinational clients.

“Critically, the service provider understands the necessity to ensure samples are prepared under strict commercial conditions and then dispatched to clients as quickly as possible for in-house testing and evaluation.

“This is reflected to a degree in second-round sampling requests from prospective clients,” the company said, noting that in the US, companies in the lithium-ion battery market have requested samples for second level testing, while in China, Volt’s MoU end-user partners and others, have all moved to second-round testwork with requests from each company to supply more product.

Currently, Volt has nonbinding MoUs with three Chinese groups for 100 000 t/y of graphite products, which represents circa 60% of planned yearly production of 170 000 t.

This includes China’s second largest integrated lithium-ion battery producer Optimum Nano; large-scale anode and electrolyte manufacturer Huzhou Chuangya and specialised anode and spherical graphite producer Shenzhen Sinuo.