Lithium-ion battery technology madagascar

In accordance with the commitments made last July, Rio Tinto QIT Madagascar Minerals (QMM) and its partner Crossboundary Energy (CBE) today laid the foundation stone for the solar and wind power plant project that will supply the QMM ilmenite mine operations in Fort Dauphin, in southern Madagascar.

The ceremony took place in the Ehoala Park area, in the presence of high dignitaries, including the Minister of Energy and Hydrocarbons, the Minister of Environment, the mayor of Fort-Dauphin and the Governor of the Anosy Region. The renewable energy project plays a key role in implementing QMM’s ‘sustainable mine’ concept and enabling Rio Tinto operations in Madagascar to reach carbon neutrality by 2023.

The renewable energy plant will be built and operated by CBE, a recognized independent power producer, with whom QMM has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement. The first unit, an 8 MW solar energy facility, will be operational in 2022. The 12 MW wind power facility will be completed in 2023. The project also includes an 8.25 MW lithium-ion battery energy storage system.

Around 18,000 solar panels and four wind turbines will enable QMM to meet all of its electricity needs during peak periods and up to 60% of its annual electricity consumption, as well as to reduce its annual carbon dioxide emissions by about 26,000 tonnes. In addition, the renewable power supply will reduce QMM’s heavy fuel oil purchases by up to 8,500 tonnes per year. With this plant, QMM will also replace the majority of the electricity it currently supplies to the town of Fort-Dauphin and its 80,000 community members with clean energy.

Matt Tilleard, Managing Partner of CBE, said: “By establishing a commercial power plant that blends solar PV, battery energy storage, and wind power, the QMM project greatly improves the island of Madagascar standing as a regional renewable energy leader. CBE is pleased to take up this technical challenge. We believe large-scale, complex commercial energy projects can be realized here in Madagascar thanks to ample supply of renewable resources, holistic government support, and knowledgeable local implementing partners."

“This project is important in Madagascar’s development strategy, particularly within the Plan Emergence Sud, which makes access to electricity for the people of the Anosy region a priority. We are pleased to see this project start on schedule, thanks to the unwavering commitment of all project sponsors and regulators. We are creating a public-private partnership model that will position Madagascar as a destination for technological innovation in the field of renewable energy and attract new expertise,” said Andry Ramaroson, Minister of Energy and Hydrocarbons of the Republic of Madagascar.

The project is also an opportunity to build local expertise. QMM and CBE are also working with the local authorities to develop manufacturing capacity to produce equipment for the renewable industry at Ehoala Park, a strategic zone open to national and international investors.

Anthony brings a wealth of global experience to his role as Managing Editor of Highways.Today. With an extensive career spanning several decades in the construction industry, Anthony has worked on diverse projects across continents, gaining valuable insights and expertise in highway construction, infrastructure development, and innovative engineering solutions. His international experience equips him with a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities within the highways industry.

Technology business enabling electrification and big data for the $1 mining industry.

If you haven''t seen the popular animated film franchise, you''d be forgiven for not knowing much about Madagascar but that could be changing very soon. Graphite, as one of the most conductive materials, is set to be key to our sustainable future and recent exploration in Southern Madagascar has identified the Ampanihy Structure Zone as what could soon become a global hub of battery-suitable graphite.

In a recent interview with Investing News Network, Simon Moores, Managing Director at Benchmark Minerals Intelligence, was notably bullish on the graphite market and forewarned investors to look beyond basic commodity prices.

"Graphite is the number one raw input material into a lithium-ion battery," said Moores.

"The order of graphite needed in these megafactories is in the millions of tonnes. At the moment, the anode space is about 165,000 tonnes per year but you’re going to need well over 1.6 million tonnes per year by 2030 if all these plans come on stream.

"That''s an incredible amount of anode material and you have to ask, where is it going to be coming from?"

One source of this battery-suitable graphite is going to be Madagascar where the Ampanihy Structure Zone hosts three major graphite projects which contain the right type to be used for battery anodes.

Within the Zone, NextSource Materials'' (TSX: NEXT) Molo Graphite Deposit which contains an exploration target in 141.28 million tonnes @ 6.13% Total Graphitic Carbon (TGC). With the project having garnered global attention from battery manufacturers already, a 10 year offtake agreement was signed in 2018 with a prominent Japanese Graphite Trading Company, for use in battery anode applications and electrical vehicles.

What has made the Ampanihy Structure Zone of even greater significance, however, are the two project exploration targets announced over the past 9 months.

Most recently, BlackEarth Minerals (ASX: BEM) announced a 20-34 million tonne Exploration Target @ 10-20% TGC* at their Ianapera Graphite Project which is located just 10km north of Molo. This target significantly increased BlackEarth''s assets within the Zone where the Company announced a 260-380mT Exploration Target @ 6-8% TGC* at their Maniry Graphite Project located 60km south of Molo.

Whilst BlackEarth Minerals is yet to join their Canadian counterparts in announcing offtake agreements, their sizeable assets will propel Southern Madagascar as a world class hub for battery-suitable graphite which will be crucial to meeting major demand increases in coming years.

BlackEarth Minerals trades under the ASX code: ''BEM''

More information on BlackEarth Minerals can be found at their Investor Centre.The full interview with Simon Moores can be viewed here.

*The Exploration Targets reported herein are not JORC compliant Mineral Resources. The potential quantity and grade of the Exploration Targets are conceptual in nature, there has been insufficient exploration to determine a Mineral Resource and there is no certainty that further exploration work will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource. Further details are available in the ASX Announcement, “Further Thick, High-Grade Graphite Intersections Received From Trenching at Ianapera Graphite Project” released on 21 March, 2019, and “Maniry exploration target estimated at 260-380 Mt at 6-8%TGC” released on 9 August, 2018.

**Reach Markets is paid a retainer to assist BEM with private investor management.

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