Specialist flake graphite company Tirupati Graphite has completed the first phase of its development into a global producer of flake graphite – a niche product used in energy storage lithium-ion batteries, chairperson Shishir Poddar says.
Reflecting on the company's performance in the financial year ended March 31, he says the company successfully managed episodes of extreme difficulty, while remaining focused on its objectives and targets.
Tirupati, which owns and operates the Sahamamy and Vatomina graphite projects, in Madagascar, produced 4 770 t of graphite in the 2023 financial year – a 59% increase on the 2 996 t produced in the 2022 financial year.
Sales revenue increased by 76% year-on-year to £2.89-million, while the basket price increased by 17% to £726/t.
Gross profit improved by 170% year-on-year to £1.37-million.
Tirupati has invested £13.5-million into developing assets since inception to March 31. Plant capacity at the two projects reached 30 000 t/y and Tirupati plans to eventually expand that capacity to 84 000 t/y.
"From the new financial year, we have begun the journey on the next phase, consolidating on what we have achieved and moving forward towards our next targets.
"The stage is now set for us to build a sustainable flake graphite company. Our key differentiator is and remains that we are the only company that has been founded and managed by a team that specialises in this speciality material, thus helping us to be cost-effective as evidenced by our lower capital intensity and operating cost," he comments.
Tirupati notes that, although conventional applications collectively remain the largest consumers of flake graphite, energy transition applications are expected to overtake those in the near future.