REACH Certification to Supply Graphite into EU/EEA

10 February 2021

Tirupati Graphite plc ('Tirupati' or the 'Company')

REACH Certification to Supply Expandable Graphite Products into EU/EEA

Tirupati Graphite plc, the fully integrated, revenue generative, specialist graphite producer and graphene developer with operations in Madagascar and India, is pleased to announce that its group company Tirupati Speciality Graphite Private Limited ('TSG'), has been accorded REACH certification for its range of expandable graphite products for marketing and sales into the European Union/ European Economic Area ('EU/EEA').

Overview

·  The European Chemicals Agency ('ECHA') has approved the Company's REACH registration for its expandable graphite products, which includes its branded CarboflameX® and trademark pending GrafEN45545 product range.

·    REACH Certification enables sale of its entire range of expandable graphite products into the EU/EEA and is a recognised international standard for these products globally.

·   Commencing sales and bulk supplies to several large consumers of its expandable graphite products across the EU/EEA, having successfully completed pilot trials and qualifications.

·   Increased demand for the Company's expandable graphite products as users look to source products outside of China.

·    REACH Certification also opens the doors for the Company to market and sell across the EU/EEA its newly developed foam manufacturing technology and product GrafEN45545, a product compliant with European Standard EN 45545 - Fire Protection on Railway Vehicles to Hazard Level 3. (see RNS dated 17 December 2020)

Shishir Poddar, CEO of Tirupati Graphite, said, "We are delighted that the ECHA has approved our REACH registration for our range of expandable graphite products, which have various applications like flame retardancy in construction, automobile and aerospace industries, gaskets and sealings, thermal management, flame retardant coatings and many more niche areas. Having already marketed and completed several pilot trials, this opens access for us to capitalise on the fast-growing appetite for these products in Europe where we anticipate ramping up sales, and into those countries globally that have adopted the REACH standard.

"Notably, the Company's unique GrafEN45545 product is compliant with one of the most stringent flame retardancy and toxicity standards further adding value to our range of expandable graphite products.  This bodes well given the upcoming UK Fire Safety Bill, which is targeted to address issues to ensure fire safety in all buildings. The registration will open more doors for us, in addition to qualifications already achieved and we expect additional successes from our foam technology collaborations."

Details

Tirupati continues to advance its operations across its portfolio including its Patalganga Project in India where it is developing various specialty graphite products.  These products have high growth applications such as green energy, energy storage, composites including electric vehicles, flame retardants, foils and gaskets, conductive polymers and insulation materials. 

Since the commissioning of Patalganga Project in 2019, the Company has marketed and successfully conducted several pilot trials with multiple customers across Europe and the UK for its expandable graphite products, registered under the trade name CarboflameX®.

However, ahead of undertaking sales, various analytical and characterisation tests were done to ensure compliance of the products with the ECHA standards and EU Regulation (EC) N° 1907/2006.  Accordingly, the results of these tests and other data were submitted to the ECHA as part of the Company's REACH registration to establish compliance of its expandable graphite materials.  The Company has now been awarded REACH Certification, enabling it to supply its branded expandable graphite products into the EU/EEA and further expedite and expand its marketing and sales efforts globally.

Over the past 12 months, the Company has experienced increased demand for its expandable graphite products as multiple consumers target diversification of source for these niche materials. Currently, 90% of expandable graphite is manufactured in China, which uses environmentally unfriendly processes. With increasing environmental concerns and manufacturing costs of Chinese products, many consumers have approached the Company for its CarboflameX® grades from across the globe. REACH Certification will help to expedite discussions with these and other new consumers across the Company's range of expandable graphite products.

Market forecasters are predicting the expandable graphite market to grow at a CAGR of 7-10% over the next decade attributed to its efficiency as a flame retardant in various applications across industries. Further, it is being adopted rapidly in thermal management, gaskets and sealings. Being a halogen free flame retardant, the Company's expandable graphite products provide an environment friendly and safer solution to fire safety compared to conventional flame retardants. The Company has grades available for various applications and is already supplying its products into multiple industries.

Expandable graphite products are used in fire insulation in the construction industry making materials and building structures non-combustible and helps in stopping the spread of fire more efficiently. Independent studies have found it to be more effective in case of large fires compared conventional flame retardants and on improving fire safety in buildings. The Company expects to supply its expandable graphite products into markets for these and similar types of applications.

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For further information, please visit https://www.tirupatigraphite.co.uk/ or contact:

Notes

Tirupati Graphite Plc is a revenue-generative, multi-asset, multi-jurisdictional, fully integrated producer and developer of high-grade natural flake graphite, speciality graphite and graphene, which captures the entire value chain.  With a unique set of properties, graphite has diverse applications with multiple growth streams and graphene forms the new generation of 2D materials. In support of this, the Company places a special emphasis on "green" applications, including renewable energy generation, energy storage and composites, and is committed to ensuring its operations are sustainable as well.

The Company's operations include primary mining and processing in Madagascar, where the Company operates two key projects, Sahamamy and Vatomina; 3,000 tpa of high-quality flake graphite concentrate with up to 96% purity is currently being produced and sold to customers globally, and this is planned to increase to 81,000 tpa by 2024 as per the Company's modular medium-term development plan.

In India, through Tirupati Speciality Graphite Private Limited ('TSG'), with whom the Company has a binding acquisition agreement subject to regulatory approvals, Tirupati processes and produces speciality graphite for use in hi-tech applications like lithium-ion batteries, fire retardants and composites. Its specialty graphite processing operations include the 1,200 tpa Patalganga Project, which was commissioned in July 2019 to manufacture and sell CARBOFLAMEX®, a trademarked fire-retardant expandable graphite product.  At the next stage of development, Patalganga shall further be expanded to 4,800 tpa capacity with capabilities to also produce high purity and micronised graphite, so increasing market and product reach by 2021. TSG has developed unique green processing technologies for manufacturing these advanced materials.

After establishing itself in the specialty graphite markets through the Patalganga Project, an additional 24,000 tpa specialty graphite processing facility is to be established in two 12,000 tpa phases.  The plant will produce expandable, high purity, micronised and spherical graphite.  The west coast of India has been chosen as the location and a detailed feasibility study has been completed.  TSG is also in the process of establishing the Tirupati Graphene and Mintech Research Centre, a state-of-the-art R&D centre focussed on manufacturing graphene, developing its applications, and further providing environmentally friendly technologies consultancy for mineral processing.