Mozambique and Madagascar, the continent's two largest producers, soon to be joined by Tanzania, will play a key role in achieving this goal.

Tanzanian graphite production is expected to increase forty-fold during this decade. This is at least what Benchmark Mineral Intelligence indicates in a new report published on Tuesday, April 25, in which it states that 11.4% of global graphite production will come from the country in 2030, compared to just 0.6% last year. .

According to these forecasts, the East African country could even surpass Madagascar as the second largest African producer of this material, essential for electric vehicle batteries. It should be noted that Benchmark is confident in the multiple projects that will soon enter production.

In the last two years, several companies have accelerated their investments in the country, with important discoveries such as that of the "largest measured graphite mineral resource in the world", announced in February 2022 by the Australian Black Rock Mining in Mahenge.

According to the Ecofin Pro database, a third of the graphite projects under development on the African continent are located in Tanzania. More than half of the 11 projects identified are economically viable and their owners, mostly Australian, are currently working on signing sales contracts or obtaining financing to begin construction.

At the end of March 2023, the construction pace of the Lindi Jumbo graphite mine, owned by Australia's Walkabout Resources, had even exceeded 85%.

As a reminder, African graphite production is currently dominated by Mozambique, followed by Madagascar. Together with Tanzania, these countries are expected to overtake China as the leader in global graphite production by 2026, according to Benchmark forecasts.

According to the company, Africa will account for 40% of global graphite supply within three years, compared to China's 35% (68% in 2021, compared to Africa's 15%).

Source: EcomNewsAfrique