Aussie Graphite Project Takes Another Step Forward

This Tuesday, Hexagon Resources (ASX:HXG) reported positive initial results from stage one of its prefeasibility study for the McIntosh flake graphite project. The company’s has now given approval to move ahead with stage two of the study. 
100 percent owned by Hexagon, the McIntosh flake graphite project is located in Western Australia in East Kimberley.
As part of stage one of the project, the company focused on environmental approvals and logistics, which included an assessment of the transport options to the Port of Wyndham and shipping to markets through the US, Europe and Asia.
Tony Cormack, CEO of Hexagon said that stage one focused on mine engineering and pit optimisation with results supporting a low strip ratio and large scale open pit operations with a long mine life.
“Stage 2 of the PFS which will focus primarily on processing along with a detailed assessment of the downstream applications such as production of spherical graphite and graphene,” he said.
In addition to other areas of the graphite and graphene markets, Hexagon states that it is also in position to take advantage of  unprecedented demand from the lithium-ion battery market. Graphite is a key component in lithium-ion batteries, and while synthetic graphite has been traditionally used in this area, more and more manufacturers are starting to use natural graphite.
Year-to-date, shares of Hexagon have increased 138.1 percent, a $0.09 bump to $0.15.