Shell:Benchmark obtains a very high percentage of all it pricing...

Shell:

Benchmark obtains a very high percentage of all it pricing intelligence from Chinese suppliers and occasional some biased pricing data from Asbury. All of their pricing origins are FOB China and to my knowledge that are multiple graphite producers outside of China that DO NOT follow FOB China pricing as advertised by BM.

The common fear among new starts is the market would not accept real world pricing relying solely on BM or Roskill; both of whom do not obtain ANY pricing intelligence from producers such as IMERYS, NDG, Skagland, AMG, Galos, or BSM. Pricing is extremely sensitive and a critical part of a producers IP.

Also, NO END USERS will discuss nor provide pricing they pay to a graphite producer or processor as the majority of end users require a producer or processor sign a NDA, CDA, or Bi-Lateral NDA to protect any information discussed.

Key hurdles that any new start faces is lenders require the following / minimum:

1. Legally and financial binding supply agreements based on qualified commercial plant production - not lab or pilot plant production; no escape clauses or exclusions based on future commercial production; (No new start has achieve this metric); There are NO OFFTAKES IN GRAPHITE and those pseudo-offtakes that have been signed / announced are full of escape, exclusions, and future commercial production clauses that are NOT punitive legally or financial, making them virtually worthless despite the fast and loose use of the operative word "binding".

2. Three to five years of sales history (no new start has achieve this metric)

Finally on pricing, the Chinese will say anything or sign anything to control the graphite market outside of China and new starts fall for this false hope hook-line-n-sinker with SYR being the first big catch with others chopping at the bait.