London-listed Total Graphite is reassessing the development strategy for its Montepuez graphite project in Mozambique, with a lower-capital modular approach intended to move the permitted project back toward construction from 2027. The company has appointed Lycopodium to update the project’s feasibility work around a staged development model, with initial production planned at a lower level before additional capacity is added. The first development module is expected to target approximately 50,000 tonnes of graphite production per year, based on historical pre-production capital of around €36 million.
A second module requiring approximately €23 million in additional investment could subsequently increase annual production toward 100,000 tonnes. The revised development structure is designed to reduce the project’s initial financing requirement while limiting execution exposure compared with building the full permitted capacity from the beginning.
Montepuez has a resource of approximately 110.5 million tonnes grading 8.2% total graphitic carbon and already has permits allowing production of up to 100,000 tonnes annually. The combination of an established resource, existing permits and planned modular development gives Montepuez relevance to efforts by Europe and other Western markets to diversify graphite supply away from China.
Graphite remains a challenging critical-minerals supply chain for Europe to diversify. China continues to hold a dominant position in both graphite mining and downstream spherical graphite processing, with spherical graphite used in lithium-ion battery anodes. A successful restart at Montepuez could therefore provide an additional upstream source of graphite for Western markets, subject to the company securing the required financing, construction partners and downstream customers.
The latest feasibility work does not include new EU or EIB financing, committed project debt or binding European offtake agreements. Montepuez consequently remains a permitted development being repositioned toward bankability rather than a fully financed mining operation. The next stages will include updated feasibility economics, confirmation of the modular capital structure and progress toward securing customers for future graphite production in Europe and other Western markets.
