The Energy Department on Friday said a graphite producer and Tesla supplier rattled by political unrest in Mozambique is continuing to make payments on a $102 million federal loan guarantee and its plans to expand a processing plant in Louisiana are still on track.
DOE’s Loan Programs Office said it remains in regular, direct communication with Syrah Resources, an Australian minerals company that announced this week that protests across Mozambique had forced it to declare a force majeure at its Balama graphite mine in the country’s Cabo Delgado province.
Syrah, a major graphite producer outside of China, received a loan in 2022 from DOE for $102 million to build a graphite processing plant in Vidalia, Louisiana, a facility that is now operational. Syrah has since asked the administration for a second loan guarantee of about $300 million to increase the capacity of the plant.
The producer reported Thursday that the declaration of force majeure triggered “events of default” with both the DOE loan and one from the U.S. International Development Finance Corp.
