Australian mineral exploration company Syrah Resources has reported that its Balama graphite and vanadium project located in Mozambique now comprises nearly one billion tons of graphite resources.
The overall Inferred Resource at Balama, which to date includes Balama West and Balama East, is 1.15 billion tons at 10.2% Total Graphitic Carbon (TGC) and 0.23% V2O5.
It comprises 117 million tons of graphite – which far exceeds the graphite reserves in the rest of the world as calculated by the USGS – and 2.7 million tons of V2O5.
Syrah Resources expects Balama to become the world’s lowest cost and largest producer of graphite, and also offer a high grade and quality product for the growing graphite market.
The company said that based on the size of the resource and the product mix achieved from metallurgical testwork, Balama can cater to demand requirements across all natural graphite flake ranges for several years.
Balama is also believed to be one of the larger vanadium deposits worldwide.