With the signing announced on December 9, 2024 by Australia’s Triton Minerals of a share sale and purchase agreement to cede control of its Ancuabe graphite project in Mozambique to China’s Shandong Yulong Gold, China’s dominance of this metal is gradually being confirmed.
Scheduled for completion at the end of February 2025, this transaction illustrates – in the eyes of specialists – China’s efforts to maintain its dominance of the global graphite market.
According to the Mozambican association Centro de Integridade Publica, once the deal is finalized, Shandong Yulong will acquire a 70% stake in the project, compared with 30% for Triton.
According to this source, the Chinese company would thus control an asset capable of delivering around 70,000 tonnes per year of graphite concentrate over a 27-year life. It joins another Chinese company in Mozambique, DH Mining Development, which aims to launch production at its Nipepe project by the end of 2024. The latter can produce 200,000 tonnes of graphite per year over 25 years.
It should be noted that China’s growing interest in African graphite comes at a time when the Middle Kingdom’s dominance is increasingly being challenged, notably by African countries.
According to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, Mozambique, Tanzania and Madagascar are set to account for 47% of new graphite supply in 2025, although these three countries only had a combined 10% share of global supply at the end of 2023.
According to several specialists, this shows the strong growth of African graphite production, already coveted by players other than China.
Olivier KAFORO
