Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dropped in to inspect International Graphite’s Collie processing and R&D facility yesterday to see first-hand the contribution the Company is making to the development of Australia’s critical minerals industry.
The Collie facility, located 200 kilometres south of Perth, is the first downstream graphite pilot and product qualification plant in Australia and a key link in the Company’s mine-to-market development strategy, which includes downstream processing at Collie and development of one of the nation’s largest graphite resources at Springdale, also in Western Australia.
Prime Minister Albanese was accompanied by Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen, and Assistant Minister Josh Wilson. They were joined by Western Australia’s Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, Reece Whitby, Member for Collie-Preston Jodie Hanns MLA, and WA Government representatives.
IG6 Chairman Phil Hearse applauded the Government’s strategy which recognises the national benefits of building Australia’s critical minerals capability, and the importance of adding value to the nation’s raw materials.
“Hosting the Prime Minister and Ministers Bowen and Wilson, and WA Minister Whitby, was a great privilege and illustrates the commitment and interest Government is bringing to our industry,” Mr Hearse said.
“The knowledge International Graphite is acquiring from its qualification plant operations here in Collie, along with valued support from both the Commonwealth and State, has been critical in helping to develop our downstream processing strategy.”
The Collie facility is home to International Graphite’s pilot scale graphite micronising and spheroidising equipment and a qualification-scale micronising plant, which is currently producing sample product for potential customers in the battery materials, defence, plastics, lubricants, and aerospace industries worldwide.
Caption: Managing Director and CEO Andrew Worland, left, with Prime Minister Albanese, Minister Bowen, Chairman Phil Hearse and Collie-Preston MLA Jodie Hanns.
IG6 Project Manager Josh Hearse, right, explains the equipment to Prime Minister Albanese and Managing Director Andrew Worland.