28 August
2024
Beowulf Mining Plc
("Beowulf" or the
"Company")
Graphite Anode Materials Plant
update
Beowulf (AIM: BEM; Spotlight: BEO), and its
wholly owned Finnish subsidiary Grafintec Oy ("Grafintec"), are
pleased to provide an update on the ongoing optimisation work for
the Graphite Anode Materials Plant ("GAMP" or the
"Project").
Highlights
·
Water treatment flow-sheet to recycle sodium
hydroxide ("NaOH") developed by Grafintec in partnership with
Dorfner Anzaplan GmbH ("Anzaplan")
·
Water treatment process recovered more than 90 per
cent of the NaOH
·
Recycled NaOH of high quality and suitable for
reuse in GAMP for production of battery-grade graphite (>99.95
per cent graphite purity)
·
High-quality calcium carbonate ("Lime") produced
as by-product from the process can be used for neutralisation of
the acidic wastewater and potentially sold to other
industries
·
The ability to recycle and reuse NaOH, the primary
reagent in the purification process, decreases its overall
consumption thereby reducing both the operating cost and
environmental impact
Ed
Bowie, Chief Executive Officer of Beowulf,
commented:
"Excellent progress continues to be made at GAMP. With much of
the technical work relating directly to the production of anode
material well-advanced, recent activities have been focused on
optimisation work and secondary workstreams such as the treatment
of process water and the recycling reagents. The results for the
recycling of NaOH, at over 90 per cent, have exceeded expectations
and have a very positive impact on the overall Project by reducing
both the input reagent costs and the environmental
impact."
"With a busy time ahead progressing the Pre-Feasibility Study
("PFS") and Environmental Impact Assessment ("EIA") for the GAMP,
we look forward to updating the market in the coming
months"
Rasmus Blomqvist, Managing Director of Grafintec,
commented:
"I
am very pleased with the progress we have made over the recent
months, demonstrating not only that our proposed GAMP process can
produce high-quality anode materials, but also that recycled
reagents from the purification process can be reused. This
recycling reduces the overall consumption of reagents, reducing
cost and our environmental footprint. Sustainability is a
prerequisite for the successful development of any industrial or
mining project and the recent work undertaken by our team and
partners demonstrates that the environmental impact can be
significantly reduced by innovative thinking."
GAMP Water Treatment Test-work Update
Grafintec has, in partnership with
Anzaplan, developed a flowsheet for the treatment of wastewater
from the graphite purification process. The focus of the wastewater
treatment was to demonstrate that NaOH, the main reagent, can be
recycled and is suitable for reuse in the process. The results from
the bench-scale testing demonstrate that the water treatment
flowsheet can successfully concentrate more than 90 per cent of the
NaOH from the caustic wastewater. Further, additional purification
tests on spheronised graphite using recycled NaOH produced battery
grade graphite of 99.96 per cent fixed carbon.
The water treatment process also
produces Lime which is needed for the neutralisation of the acidic
wastewater stream from the sulphuric acid purification step. The
Lime produced from the caustic wastewater treatment process was
successfully tested for neutralisation of the acidic wastewater.
After neutralisation, the acidic wastewater was blended with the
treated caustic wastewater and analysed at Anzaplan's laboratory.
The analysis of the wastewater confirms that the most critical
chemical and physical properties are well below general limits for
wastewater discharge into Finnish municipal sewage
systems.
Whilst a proportion of the Lime
produced from the wastewater treatment process will be used for the
neutralisation of acidic wastewater, the test-work also
demonstrated that excess Lime is produced in the process. The Lime
has been analysed and compared to commercial technical grade
products and shows only minor differences in the chemical
composition of the two products. It can thus be assumed that
the excess Lime can potentially be sold to other markets and
generate additional income for the Project.
The positive results and findings
from the water treatment process are expected to have positive
impacts on the PFS, EIA and environmental permitting processes for
GAMP. The high concentration of recycled NaOH and Lime
significantly reduces the need to add fresh NaOH and Lime to the
process, thus reducing the reagents costs and potentially
offsetting part of the cost related to wastewater management. It is
also likely to have a significant positive impact on the
sustainability of the Project. The production of NaOH and Lime is
associated with high carbon footprint and therefore by reducing the
use of fresh reagents, the overall greenhouse gas emissions of the
Project will be significantly reduced.
EU
Critical Raw Materials Act and Strategic Projects
Application
On 23 May 2024, the European Union's
("EU") Critical Raw Materials Act ("CRMA") was enacted. The goal of
the CRMA is to strengthen the critical raw materials value-chain
within the EU by diversifying imports, reducing and monitoring
strategic supply-risk, and enhancing the sustainability and
circularity of the raw-materials value-chain. The CRMA has set a
target that by 2030, 40 per cent of all processed critical
raw-materials used within the EU are produced by the EU, and that
10 per cent of the critical raw-materials used are extracted from
within the EU. To reach the CRMA targets, a regulatory framework,
known as the Strategic Projects framework, has been developed. A
Strategic Project application process has been drawn-up by the
European Commission with the intention that successful projects
will benefit from access to faster permitting processes and
additional sources of capital.
The first call for applications for
Strategic Projects was issued on 23 May 2024 with the first
deadline date on 22 August 2024. A second call for
applications for Strategic Projects is planned for early
2025.
Grafintec intends to complete the
PFS and EIA for GAMP, demonstrating the technical viability of the
Project, and apply for Strategic Project status in 2025. The
Company assesses that the greater level of maturity of its graphite
business will enhance its chances of being successful with the
Strategic Project application.
Enquiries:
Beowulf Mining plc
Ed Bowie, Chief Executive
Officer
ed.bowie@beowulfmining.com
SP
Angel
(Nominated Adviser & Joint
Broker)
Ewan Leggat / Stuart Gledhill / Adam
Cowl
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3470 0470
Alternative Resource Capital
(Joint Broker)
Alex
Wood
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7186 9004
BlytheRay
Tim Blythe / Megan Ray
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7138 3204
Cautionary Statement
Statements and assumptions made in
this document with respect to the Company's current plans,
estimates, strategies and beliefs, and other statements that are
not historical facts, are forward-looking statements about the
future performance of Beowulf. Forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, those using words such as "may", "might",
"seeks", "expects", "anticipates", "estimates", "believes",
"projects", "plans", strategy", "forecast" and similar expressions.
These statements reflect management's expectations and assumptions
in light of currently available information. They are subject to a
number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to ,
(i) changes in the economic, regulatory and political environments
in the countries where Beowulf operates; (ii) changes relating to
the geological information available in respect of the various
projects undertaken; (iii) Beowulf's continued ability to secure
enough financing to carry on its operations as a going concern;
(iv) the success of its potential joint ventures and alliances, if
any; (v) metal prices, particularly as regards iron ore. In the
light of the many risks and uncertainties surrounding any mineral
project at an early stage of its development, the actual results
could differ materially from those presented and forecast in this
document. Beowulf assumes no unconditional obligation to
immediately update any such statements and/or forecast.
