Graphene and graphite producer Graphjet Technology plans to construct a commercial artificial graphite production facility in Nevada.
The facility is expected to recycle up to 30,000 metric tons of palm kernel material annually to produce up to 10,000 metric tons of battery-grade artificial graphite. This production capacity is expected to support the production of batteries for over 100,000 electric vehicles (EVs) annually.
Alongside graphite production, Graphjet’s inaugural commercial plant in Malaysia, scheduled for commissioning in the second quarter of 2024, will process palm kernel shells into hard carbon, which will be transported to Nevada.
By bypassing a conversion step in the production process, Graphjet anticipates expediting graphite production at its Nevada facility. The company targets commissioning and initiating production at the new facility by 2026.
“As the only pure-play direct agriculture waste-to-graphite technology developer, Graphjet is well positioned to become the leading source of graphite for the US, and we are excited to have Nevada serve as our launching pad into this market,” said Aiden Lee, CEO and Co-Founder of Graphjet.
“We are laser-focused on getting our commercial production online as quickly as possible and are in discussions with several players to secure offtake agreements for our planned Nevada facility. We look forward to investing in the region and creating many local green energy jobs as we build a first-of-its-kind, next-generation graphite production facility in the US," Lee continued.
Nevada serves as a strategic location for Graphjet as it is in close proximity to a large quantity of battery manufacturers and automotive OEMs. The planned manufacturing facility is expected to create more than 500 high-skilled positions and attract investments ranging between $150 million and $200 million. Graphjet is currently evaluating financing and strategic options to fund the plant.
“As leading automotive OEMs and battery manufacturers seek cost-effective and more environmentally friendly sourced production, Graphjet is able to provide a sustainable and cost-effective solution that can support their graphite needs and address the accelerating demand for this strategic material,” Lee added. “For perspective, Graphjet’s technology produces only 2.95 CO2 emissions per KG of graphite, compared to 17 CO2 emissions per KG with synthetic graphite in China and even 9.2. CO2 emissions per KG with natural graphite in Canada.”
