Mozambique Mining: Syrah Balama fines circuit gets an upgrade

The commissioning of attrition cells for the fines graphite circuit at the Balama graphite project, in Mozambique, has been successfully completed, ASX-listed Syrah Resources said.

The company told shareholders that initial assessment was showing significant improvement in fines graphite fixed carbon levels, which will enable improvements in both quality and recovery.

The planned production of higher fixed carbon graphite products will be driven by customer demand, Syrah said on Tuesday, with the company expecting the development of a price premium for higher carbon content products.

“The company continues its production improvement plan focused on stable plant flows, increased plant utilization, recovery rates and process control governance at the Balama operation,” said Syrah MD and CEO Shaun Verner.

“It is pleasing to see the team achieve significant daily improvements arising from these actions.”

Syrah in July this year revised its full year production targets to between 135 000 t and 145 000 t of graphite, down from the initial target of 160 000 t, while C1 cash operating costs have been forecast at between $430/t to $450/t, compared with the previous guidance of $400/t, following a ramp-up review of the Balama project