Tesla’s moves toward manufacturing auto and home storage has set off a buzz of misunderstandings and opportunities in the graphite space as some 40 TSX and ASX junior miners position themselves to meet anticipated increased future demand for this critical mineral. In this interview with The Gold Report, Flinders Resources CEO and President Blair Way shares the four factors to consider when analyzing a graphite company. Warning: It is a very different proposition than investing in a gold company.
The Gold Report: What is the state of the current global graphite market and what impact might Tesla’s construction of a battery Gigafactory in the desert in Nevada have on future demand for the mineral?
Blair Way: Because graphite is used in many energy-related applications (including electric vehicles, Pebble Bed Nuclear Reactors, fuel cells, solar panels and electronics ranging from smartphones to laptops), it has been categorized as a critical, strategic mineral by several governments including the United States and Europe.
What does this really mean? At this point in time it means nothing—graphite is in oversupply and prices are low. However, if China decided to stop supplying graphite to the world, then the West would be in trouble. This is highly unlikely to ever happen. As far as the impact of the Tesla plant on the greater market, that’s yet to be defined in detail, but it will create more demand for graphite, both natural and synthetic.
TGR: How big is the graphite market?
BW: The graphite market combined—the natural flake and synthetic market—is worth approximately $13 billion ($13B). Synthetic is 90% of that market, and natural flake graphite is 10%.
TGR: How big is the natural flake graphite market?
BW: The worldwide natural flake graphite market hovers around 1.1 million tons a year (1.1 Mtpa) of which 75% is from China, 11% from India, 6% from …read more