(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors - N.America) There's been an uptick in newsflow from graphite firm Flinders Resources Ltd (CVE:FDR) in recent weeks which looks set to continue through 2016.
Shares in Toronto advanced almost 15% on Thursday as the group unveiled a significant milestone - that graphene had been produced for the first time using a graphite concentrate sourced from its 100% owned Woxna mine in Sweden.
That's important because all the company's efforts currently are going into positioning itself as a leading supplier to current and future graphite and graphene industries when demand and prices pick up.
Graphite is used in cars in brakes and clutches among other industrial uses while the high grade material is used in batteries.
Graphene has been dubbed a wonder material can conduct heat and electricity and is used in electrodes in energy storage barriers in plastics and coatings.
Today's graphene development comes after the firm was chosen to take part in a US$280000 program funded by the Swedish government to research and commercialise the production of graphene in Sweden.
So what's Woxna?
Flinders is the only western producer of natural flake graphite with a fully constructed permitted and producing plant (100000-tonne-per-annum feed producing 10000 tons of over 90% graphite concentrate) and mine called Woxna.
It was on care and maintenance when it bought it in 2011 and operations restarted in 2015 using freshly mined material but falling prices for flake graphite and a downturn in the general sector meant operations stopped.
The plant is now described as in a production-ready- state until refractory-grade graphite concentrate demand increases.
Recently the firm has focused on cutting costs while partners work on Woxna concentrate to see how to generate value added products.
The mine has a measured and indicated resource of 7.7mln tonnes at 9.3% graphite.
Upgrading to pure battery grade
A key announcement also came last month when the group said its Chinese partner had upgraded graphite from Woxna to high purity battery grade.
The group highlighted how increasing numbers of EU car makers were pursuing the development of electric vehicles more aggressively.
In April and May Flinder's marketing team will travel Europe North America and Asia to demonstrate the Woxna high-purity spherical graphite samples to tap into rapid battery cell production growth.
Flinders believes producing value-added products can offset the downturn in the graphite market and with its Chinese partner is now finalising a flow sheet for the production of high-purity battery-grade graphite.
It is worth noting at this point that Chinese electric vehicle production increased to over 340000 units last year up nearly 140% in the fourth quarter of 2015 alone and there is around 10 times more graphite than lithium required in a lithium-ion battery.
What the chief executive Blair Way said:
"Flinders is at the leading edge of an emerging industry that could be a game changer.
"With a fully permitted and operational mine and concentrator we are able to produce graphite concentrate stock to feed into a proven commercial purification flow sheet.
He added: "No other public Western world graphite company has established these key components necessary to be a supplier of battery-grade graphite."
Speaking to Proactive he recently said big name European car makers could be potential customers. "They are all looking at electric vehicles and will be looking at their supply chains.'
Shares today added 14.71% to C$0.39.
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