Great Lakes Graphite Provides Update on Lochaber Graphite Deposit Bulk Sample, Pilot Plant Metallurgical Testing and Customer Sampling
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Feb 14, 2017) - Great Lakes Graphite Inc. ("GLK" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:GLK)(OTC PINK:GLKIF)(FRANKFURT:8GL) is pleased to provide an update on further metallurgical and purification work that involves analyzing and upgrading graphitic material taken in a bulk sample from the Company's Lochaber Graphite Project in southwestern Québec.
The bulk sample was selected and removed from a location in close proximity to both the historical Plumbago Mine site located on the Lochaber property as well as the most recent drill program conducted by GLK, with the objective of upgrading the graphitic material for certain high tech applications that require extremely high purity and conducting additional qualification testing with Great Lakes' customers.
The bulk sample was delivered to Process Research ORTECH ("PRO") in Mississauga, Ontario for processing. Great Lakes formed a technology partnership with PRO in June 2015 to commercialize a graphite purification process. PRO filed a Notice of Invention to protect the intellectual property that underpins the proprietary process of purifying flake graphite to 99.9%. The partnership agreement calls for Great Lakes Graphite and PRO to complete development work on the purification process, with a view towards high technology commercial applications and the work that is being carried out on this bulk sample is a continuation of this joint initiative. Results from this purity testing will be available in the third quarter of this year.
The main objective of the partnership is to develop a purification process to achieve a graphite product of +99% purity. The development program consists of:
- Physical beneficiation tests involving a combination of flotation and comminution to remove any gangue material adhered to the graphite flake and produce a high grade graphite concentrate.
- Chemical leaching with PRO's proprietary purification process to remove residual metal and oxide impurities to produce a high purity (+99%) graphite product.
Beneficiation of graphite concentrate to a 99%-plus purity level is a requirement for use in lithium-ion batteries and for other high technology applications. For example, semiconductor technology demands constant innovation and ultra-high-purity materials from suppliers. Products made from high-purity fine-grain graphite meet these requirements. Development of materials for wafer production processes and coatings enhance the purity of the next semiconductor generation, while extending the service life of materials at the same time.
Great Lakes Graphite CEO Paul Gorman said, "Having Lochaber as a potential source of long-term supply of high quality natural flake graphite is an important asset for our Company. While our immediate focus remains on upgrading imported material as well as developing a customer base in the synthetic graphite market, we will continue to work our long-term plan that will potentially include the development of a domestic resource base."
Qualified Person / Quality Control
The extraction of the bulk sample was supervised by QP Mr. Paul Nagerl, M.Sc., P.Geo. an independent qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 guidelines. Mr. Nagerl has reviewed and approved the technical related content of this news release
About Great Lakes Graphite: Great Lakes Graphite is an industrial minerals processing company working to supply customers with innovative, high quality value-added carbon products.
There is no significant graphite production in North America now. As pricing and demand continue to rise, Great Lakes Graphite is one of the first new domestic suppliers to a growing regional customer base. We continually work to ensure our products are of the very best quality and consistency and accompanied with outstanding customer service.
The Company is party to an agreement for shared use of a portion of an industrial facility located in Matheson, Ontario owned by Northfil Resources Limited, as well as for supply of high quality natural graphite concentrate (see news release dated 03/23/15), which have positioned Great Lakes Graphite to become an emerging domestic manufacturer and supplier of micronized products to a growing regional customer base.
Further information regarding Great Lakes can be found on the Company's website at: www.GreatLakesGraphite.com.
Great Lakes Graphite trades with symbol GLK on the TSX Venture Exchange and currently has 123,444,330 shares outstanding.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Caution Regarding Forward Looking Information: Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward looking information" which involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward looking information. When used in this press release, such forward looking information may use such words as "may'', "will'', "expect'', "believe'', "plan'' and other similar terminology. Forward looking information is provided for the purpose of presenting information about management's current expectations relating to the future events and the operating performance of the Company, and readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. The forward looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the ability of the Company to fulfill the orders and future orders, regulatory requirements, general economic, market or business conditions and future developments in the sectors of the economy in which the business of Great Lakes operates. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Please see the Company's financial statements, MD&A and other documents available on www.sedar.com, for a more detailed description of the risk factors. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward looking information, whether a result of new information, future results or otherwise, except as required by law.
Contact
Great Lakes Graphite Inc.
Paul Ferguson
Chief Marketing Officer
1-800-754-4510 x106
PFerguson@GreatLakesGraphite.com
Great Lakes Graphite Inc.
Paul Gorman
Chief Executive Officer
1-800-754-4510 x109
PGorman@GreatLakesGraphite.com