GBM’s Kearney graphite mine restart: PEA economics and cost drivers for engineers
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Restarting Global Battery Materials’ Kearney graphite mine in Ontario is valued at $183 million (C$260 million), with a PEA outlining an after-tax IRR of 67%, a 1.3-year payback and undiscounted after-tax cash flow of about $421 million over a 20-year life. The brownfield plan targets initial output of 23,000 t/y of ~95% carbon graphite concentrate from 2028, ramping to 50,000 t/y, drawing on 29.2 Mt indicated at 2.10% Cg and 33.8 Mt inferred at 1.90% Cg. Operating costs are projected to fall from C$31.35/t milled on diesel to C$25.50/t after grid connection.
Technical Brief
- Initial capital is C$65.9 million with sustaining capital of C$30.9 million over life.
- PEA assumes graphite concentrate, industrial graphite products and upstream battery materials sold into North American markets.
- Operating strategy includes an initial diesel-powered phase before switching to provincial grid electricity supply.
- Brownfield plan refurbishes existing processing plant, haulage access and disturbed footprint rather than greenfield construction.
- June 2026 resource: 29.2 Mt indicated at 2.10% Cg and 33.8 Mt inferred at 1.90% Cg.
- Contained graphite totals about 613,700 t indicated and 641,700 t inferred within the current resource.
- Historic open pit processed nearly 1 Mt of ore between 1989 and 1994 before shutdown.
- Site lies ~280 km north of Toronto, west of Algonquin Provincial Park, with established transport links.
- Next technical milestone is completion of a definitive feasibility study; no schedule has been disclosed.
Our Take
The earlier coverage of Global Battery Materials’ restart plan for Kearney highlighted targeted flake output from 2028, and when set against China’s more-than-90% share of downstream battery-grade graphite processing, this suggests GBM will likely need a downstream or offtake strategy that links Ontario production to processors in South Korea or the United States to capture battery-materials premiums.
The very low operating costs quoted for the Kearney graphite mine once grid-connected, combined with a 20-year mine life, position it in our coverage as a potentially lower-cost flake supplier than several other Canadian graphite projects that are still at PEA or PFS stage and assume higher unit power costs or full diesel reliance.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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