By Sam Hussey April 28, 2015, 8 a.m. THE state government has...

By Sam Hussey April 28, 2015, 8 a.m.


THE state government has flagged its interest in local graphite supplies following the Eyre Peninsula's successful return to the industry.

The immediate success of local mining group Valence Industries has sparked nationwide interest and a comprehensive overview of the state's graphite potential.

The state government analysis, released following this month's Paydirt mining conference, says "a window of opportunity exists to capture South Australia's natural flake graphite potential".

While the world's supply of graphite is heavily skewed to China, who last year supplied more than two thirds of the global market, Valence Industries chief executive Chris Darby said he expected China would eventually exhaust its supplies.

South Australia sits on more than 60 per cent of the country's available graphite supplies and the state government believes the shift in supply will present an opportunity for new producers to enter the expanding graphite industry.
However Mr Darby said it would take considerable time, money and effort before other companies reached Valence Industries' level.

"There are a series of challenges ahead, so it would take at least a few years for them to get to where we are today," he said.

"You can't just employ anyone to come and do the work either, we had to train all of our guys before we could start things."

While graphite has traditionally been associated with batteries and lubricants, Mr Darby said the adaptable nature of the product meant potential uses were now limitless.

"It's used to create conductive paints for ships to stop algae from damaging it," he said.

"It's in plastics, solar power cells, brake lining for cars, laptop fans... it's just really adaptable."

Mr Darby said the previous operators of the Uley graphite mine knew of its potential but were overzealous in their approach.

"The first thing we looked at was demand. Before we made any big plans we wanted to know if the customers wanted to purchase graphite."

"They (previous operators) hadn't designed the right plan, they knew the graphite was good but in the end they couldn't achieve what they wanted to," he said.

While the reopening of the Uley mine has already seen Valence Industries successfully sell and ship its first load of graphite, Mr Darby said the company was only at stage one in its long term plan.

"One of the first things we said was 'lets work out something we can do extra'," he said
"In the world no one has found 62 percent flake graphite before."

Mr Darby said that there was no substitute for high quality graphite, as a lesser product would have a relay effect and cause a less reliable end product, whether it be batteries or paints.

http://www.portlincolntimes.com.au/story/3038853/uley-setting-national-graphite-standard/