Phoenix, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - May 3, 2021) - The Stock Day Podcast welcomed NextSource Materials Inc. (OTCQB: NSRCF) ("the Company"), a battery materials development company based in Toronto, Canada that is intent on becoming a fully integrated, global supplier of critical battery and technology materials needed to power the sustainable energy revolution. Executive Vice President of the Company, Brent Nykoliation, joined Stock Day host Everett Jolly.
Jolly began the interview by asking about the Company's recent developments. "We've had a very busy year. NextSource Materials has attracted a high-profile strategic investor, Sir Mick Davis, who is the former CEO of Xstrata Plc and created a new fund, Vision Blue Resources, to invest in high-quality and de-risked battery material assets," explained Nykoliation. "He has an unquestionable track record, having grown Xstrata into a multi-billion dollar mining conglomerate and its valuation. Vision Blue Resources made its first and most sizable investment to date of US$29.5 million into NextSource," continued Nykoliation. "This investment fully funds our project with commissioning of our Molo graphite mine in April 2022."
Jolly then commented on a recent announcement released by the Company regarding their partnership with key players in the Tesla supply chain to build a value-added battery anode facility to further upgrade the Company's SuperFlake® graphite concentrate from the mine. "What people may not realize is that graphite has a very prominent and critical role in the anode side of a lithium-ion battery; it is the largest raw material input by volume in that battery," explained Nykoliation. "What we've been doing under the radar of investors is developing a project of scale and quality that will be in production next year," he shared. "There have been extremely few graphite projects outside of China that have entered production in the last thirty years, and ours will be the next to do that, with lowest quartile operating costs and offtakes in place for 100% of our initial production with Tier one customers.
"Our latest news is our exclusive partnership with two very significant processors that currently supply major battery anode companies in Japan, as well as the Tesla supply chain. This collaboration involves duplicating the exact facility that currently produces battery grade graphite for Tesla outside of China, and provides NextSource with the significant advantage of being able to supply car companies with a complete battery anode solution that is already established within the Tesla supply chain" shared Nykoliation.
The conversation then turned to the Company's graphite production goals. "Initial production will be 17,000 tonnes, which is about 3% of the total flake graphite market" said Nykoliation. "We understand the market very well and have chosen this initial production volume to allow our offtake partners the required time to place and verify our run-of-mill material with their key customers", explained Nykoliation. "Once that short verification period is complete, we will need to expand production well beyond that, and quickly, in order to meet forecasted demand by our offtake partners".
"You have trademarked your graphite as SuperFlake® , what is the genesis around that and what makes it "super"?", asked Jolly. "Flake graphite is the only form of graphite that can go into every single demand application, with the top demand ones being refractories, lithium-ion batteries, graphene applications and graphite foils required in the high-value fire retardant and technology markets, such as components in 5G networks and consumer electronic devices." said Nykoliation. He then explained that the Company decided to trademark their flake graphite after a comment from the engineer from one prominent graphite products manufacturer who, after sharing their final test verification feedback, commented that NextSource's graphite had characteristics that they had never seen before in any other graphite they have tested. "Their engineer said, "You guys have a sort of "super flake" and we thought, that would be a good trademark. So we registered SuperFlake® in North America, Europe, Japan, the UK and South Korea," he shared. "It is our calling card to say we have a very high-quality graphite that meets and exceeds the highest test criteria by one prominent manufacturer that produces graphite foils for Apple and other notable tech companies".
Jolly then asked about the potential of the EV industry over the next several years. Nykoliation elaborated on graphite's historical importance across numerous applications, including its long established role in the production of steel. "Graphite is essential in the steel making process as a refractory and carbonizer and has been for almost a century. On top of this traditional demand, we now have additional and significant demand as a critical battery material - one you need large amounts of for electric vehicle batteries," said Nykoliation. "As a general rule of thumb, for each kWh in a car battery, you need 2.5 pounds of graphite. For example, a Tesla Model S with a 100 kWh battery will contain over 250 pounds of graphite. "As we start to see mass adoption of EVs forecasted within this decade, the growth projections for graphite and other battery materials will be significant. We're seeing this massive shift to electrification in automotive and you're going to need the raw materials to power these batteries," continued Nykoliation. "With graphite, you're seeing significant demand growth between 500% to 700% in the next decade."
"The United States, via a Presidential Executive Order, has classified graphite as a critical material and currently imports 100% of its graphite, mostly from China who produces 2/3 of the world's graphite and where virtually all of the world's battery grade graphite is processed." said Nykoliation. "Now enter NextSource Materials, with a very large and high-quality deposit that will be in production within 12 months. In addition, we just partnered with a Japanese company that is in the Tesla supply chain to produce battery grade graphite with our material and supply Tesla and other notable car companies they currently supply with the option to source this material from outside of China".
To close the interview, Nykoliation encouraged listeners and shareholders to consider the value and potential of graphite as the EV industry continues to grow and to do their due diligence when considering an investment in a graphite company. "There is a significant amount of misinformation out there on graphite. NextSource prides itself on being experts in this space and as a result have secured a very prestigious strategic investor and now offtake partners for the entire value chain of graphite. We are going to be very busy this year as we ready our Molo mine for production next April, well ahead of our competition, and fast-tracking our next-stage expansion to meet the expected demand from our offtake partners" said Nykoliation.
To hear Brent Nykoliation's entire interview, follow the link to the podcast here: https://audioboom.com/posts/7857294-nextsource-materials-inc-discusses-securing-key-partners-in-the-tesla-supply-chain-and-commissio.
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About NextSource Materials Inc.
NextSource Materials Inc. is a battery materials development company based in Toronto, Canada that is intent on becoming a fully integrated, global supplier of critical battery and technology materials needed to power the sustainable energy revolution.
Targeting commercial production by April 2022, the Company's Molo graphite project in Madagascar is regarded as one of the largest and highest-quality graphite deposits globally and the only project with SuperFlake® graphite.
With expected low-cost operations and both its mining and environmental licenses in place, NextSource Materials has forged strategic and exclusive partnerships with key supply chain participants to provide graphite-based anode material to international OEMs for lithium-ion and fuel cell applications, and graphite for high-end, value-added applications where graphite is an essential material.
The Company will enter into production in phases and utilize an all-modular build approach to construct the Molo graphite mine. Initial production is expected to be approximately 17,000 tonnes per annum ("tpa") over the first two years of production, followed by a significant expansion in production planned in year three to match market demand.
NextSource Materials is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol "NEXT" and on the OTCQB under the symbol "NSRCF".
Please see "Molo Feasibility Study, National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report on the Molo Graphite Project located near the village of Fotadrevo in the Province of Toliara, Madagascar Prepared by Erudite Strategies (Pty) Ltd" dated May 31, 2019 for certain other details and assumptions relating to the parameters of the project, mineral resource and reserve estimates and data verification procedures.
Mr. Craig Scherba, P.Geo., President and CEO of NextSource, is the qualified person who reviewed and approved the technical information provided in this press release.
For further information about NextSource visit their website at www.nextsourcematerials.com, call +1.416.364.4911, or email Brent Nykoliation, Executive Vice President, Corporate Development at brent@nextsourcematerials.com or Craig Scherba, President and CEO at craig@nextsourcematerials.com.
Safe Harbour: This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" ("forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this release include statements regarding collaboration agreements to build a value-added SPG (anode) facility, time to commissioning the BAF, the demand for EVs and HEVs, the use of SuperFlake, successful and on-budget construction of the Molo Graphite Project, SPG plant and BAF, sourcing the funds needed to construct the BAF, expansion of the BAF, estimated future production from the Molo Graphite Project, completion of the technical studies and expansion of the Molo Graphite Project. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and assumptions that involve a number of risks, which could cause actual results to vary and, in some instances, to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release, including the risk that the Molo graphite mine is not built on the expected time and cost estimates, that the mineral reserve and resource estimates for the Molo Graphite Project are incorrect, that expected recoveries and costs to produce SPG are incorrect, and that permits and licences to operate the Molo Graphite Project may not be renewed or may be revoked. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur or, if any of them do so, what benefits the Company will derive there from. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.
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