The French firm Imerys, one of the world's leading producers of graphite for the making of batteries, is in the process of renewing its permit to explore a huge area of 35,050 hectares (350.5 km²) surrounding its Okanjande mine. Submitted to the Namibian authorities in early November, the request for a five-year extension could enable it to identify further reserves at the Okanjande deposit (currently estimated to contain 12 million tonnes of ore) and thereby extend the operational shelf life of the site. This bid to renew its licence reflects Imerys' confidence in the potential of graphite in the coming years. The firm is banking on Chinese demand for the mineral, which is used as a component in electrical batteries. However, the Okanjande site has experienced a series of difficulties and technical glitches since it came online in May 2017, which even led to it temporarily ceasing production in November 2018 when the bottom fell out of the graphite market.
展开▼
