Published: August 14, 2019 |

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Westwater Resources said that testing of its ULTRA-PMG™ (purified micronized graphite) product by a major battery manufacturer has resulted in a request for a bulk sample of one metric tonne for further qualification testing. Though the company’s non-disclosure agreement prevents Westwater from disclosing the manufacturer’s name, they are able to say that this advancement is a major milestone in its battery graphite development.

Produced from natural crystalline flake graphite, our ULTRA-PMG™ is used as an additive to increase the conductivity of cathodes in several types of batteries including primary lithium, alkaline and lead-acid batteries. The ULTRA-PMG™ is designed to enhance the performance of these types of batteries which can give the manufacturers a competitive advantage.

Product qualification testing by battery manufacturers is typically a staged program, with each test dependent upon the success of the last. Laboratory-scale samples (a few grams in size) are tested for performance, and once successful, samples of a kilogram (2.2 pounds) in size are tested. As these tests are successful, manufacturers then ask for a bulk sample of material, commonly in the one metric tonne (2,204 pounds) size range. Since 2016 they have been providing samples to potential customers of its graphite products for testing. Some of these tests are still underway and they celebrate this milestone test result and material request.

“Our team has successfully produced high-performing graphite for battery manufacturers and now can celebrate meeting this major milestone. This manufacturer has requested that we provide a one metric tonne sample at Westwater’s earliest opportunity. This request, coupled with our product development with other companies, promises a bright future for Westwater as energy storage becomes the critical enabling technology for renewable energy and electric transportation development and implementation,” said Christopher M. Jones, president and chief executive officer.

The request by this important potential customer of a large scale sample is a significant step forward in the company’s ongoing efforts to become a premier supplier of very high-quality battery-grade graphite materials. Further, it is a strong indication of the high quality of the graphite products that they have developed to meet the requirements of the worldwide battery manufacturing industry, and it further positions Westwater to meet its objective of becoming a reliable producer and supplier of battery grade graphite materials.

The company’s next step is to construct and operate a pilot plant. Westwater intends to produce its full suite of products from the pilot, including our ULTRA-PMG™, ULTRA-DEXDG™ and ULTRA-CSPG™ battery graphite materials. This pilot will serve two critical purposes in the development of the project.

• Able to test and optimize the design of production line equipment to inform the final engineering of the full-scale production facility.
 
• Able to produce products in much higher quantities in order to supply test materials for the next phase of product qualification. This will further enhance its base of potential customers as they move closer to full scale production.

About Westwater Resources
WWR is focused on developing energy-related materials. The company’s battery-materials projects include the Coosa Graphite Project — the most advanced natural flake graphite project in the contiguous United States — and the associated Coosa Graphite Mine located across 41,900 acres (~17,000 hectares) in east-central Alabama. In addition, the company maintains lithium mineral properties in prospective lithium brine basins in Nevada and Utah. Westwater’s uranium projects are located in Texas and New Mexico. In Texas, the company has two licensed and currently idled uranium processing facilities and approximately 11,000 acres (~4,400 hectares) of prospective in-situ recovery uranium projects. In New Mexico, the company controls mineral rights encompassing approximately 188,700 acres (~76,000 hectares) in the prolific Grants Mineral Belt, which is one of the largest concentrations of sandstone-hosted uranium deposits in the world. Incorporated in 1977 as Uranium Resources, Inc., Westwater also owns an extensive uranium information database of historic drill hole logs, assay certificates, maps and technical reports for the western United States.

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