A new graphite player is taking a swing at bringing the Kearney mine back into production in central Ontario.
G6 Energy and SongWoo EM Co. of South Korea are tag-teaming in a “strategic combination” backed by “strategic and institutional investors” to form Global Battery (GB) Materials.
In a Nov. 7 news release, the company said it’s on the fast track to establish a vertically integrated mining and technology company that’s out to produce graphite-based anode material, an important ingredient used lithium-ion battery manufacturing
G6 Energy owns the dormant Kearney mine, outside the small community of Kearney, south of Burk’s Falls, in the Almaguin Highlands.
The South Koreans bring to the table a patented process to manufacture anode materials. It’s in the advanced testing stage at a pilot plant in South Korea.
The GB Materials release didn’t go into great technical, financial or permitting detail on how its plans will come to fruition other than to say it’s working toward a mine restart with anode production scheduled for 2028.
Kearney is an inactive open-pit mine and mill complex. The infrastructure was built in the late 1980s.
The mine operated until 1994 when it was halted due to a drop in global graphite prices. Ontario Graphite owned it until 2022 when it was picked up by G6 Energy.
The Kearney mine regarded as one of the largest flake graphite deposits in the world.
In 2020, Ontario Graphite said it contains 23 million tonnes of proven and probable reserves, at an average grade of 1.95 per cent Cg; 61.1 million tonnes of resources in the measured and indicated category, at an average grade of 1.99 per cent average; and 59.2 million tonnes of inferred sources at an average grade of 1.88 per cent Cg.
Ontario Graphite also had its issues with containing and treating effluent levels before it was discharged into the Magnetawan River.
The management behind Global Battery Materials want to be part of an onshoring movement to create a domestic critical mineral supply chain.
In the release, GB Materials noted 98 per cent of the world’s graphite processing is done in China. Chinese export controls and U.S. anti-dumping measures underscore the urgency of developing home-grown sources of supply.
The company said it’ll address this challenge by combining this resource at Kearney with South Korean processing technology.
“Critical minerals are at the heart of energy security and industrial strategy,” said GB Materials chair Renaud Adams, in a statement. “We are bringing together proven assets in Tier 1 jurisdictions and experienced leadership to accelerate the development of a sustainable supply chain for graphite anode materials.”
“Graphite remains one of the most essential yet vulnerable materials in the energy transition. Our company was built to address the urgent need for a reliable supply of Critical Minerals,” said Eric Miller, Chief Executive Officer of GB Materials. “By combining Canada’s resource base with Korea’s advanced processing expertise, we will bring practical and scalable solutions to the market.”
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