TORONTO, March 12, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Great Lakes Graphite Inc. ("Great Lakes" or the "Company") (TSX-V:GLK) (OTC:GLKIF) (FWB:8GL) is pleased to announce the initialization of activities leading up to the recommissioning of the Matheson Graphite Micronization Facility. Pursuant to the agreement in principle announced on February 26th, 2015 between Great Lakes and Northfil Resources Limited, the parties have since successfully concluded the negotiation process and entered into a Facilities Use Agreement ("FUA" or the "Agreement") for the Matheson Micronization Facility. The agreement specifies an initial five year term, with an option to extend the agreement for an additional five years.
Paul Adams, President of Northfil Resources Limited said, "We welcome the opportunity to work with the Great Lakes team and are encouraged by the pace they are setting. It is a pleasure to work with experienced professionals and we look forward to what the future brings."
The Matheson facility contains all of the equipment required to micronize flake graphite and is capable of producing well in excess of 10,000 tonnes of finished product annually. The facility is located in Matheson, Ontario, 70 km east of Timmins and features city water, natural gas, ample electrical capacity, a rail siding, and easy highway access.
The centerpiece of the Matheson facility is a main building that is 85,000 square feet in size and houses the area specified under the Agreement.
Matheson Work Initiated With Site Engineering Assessment
With the FUA signed, work has begun on the Matheson Micronization Facility. A contractor conducted a site engineering assessment at the facility earlier this week, for the purpose of confirming the scope of work required to re-commission the facility.
Next Steps
GLK Innovations, an operating division of Great Lakes Graphite, will spend the next five months developing the necessary configurations for the equipment to produce four types of micronized products for which significant market demand exists.
Paul Gorman, Chief Executive Officer of Great Lakes Graphite said, "Securing long term access to this facility positions us to quickly complete our transition to a commercial enterprise. Making that transition paves the way to substantial financial strength and growing shareholder value. Due to a unique set of favorable circumstances, we have been able to go from concept to execution in just a few short months. While our business plan has always included a micronization component, we anticipated a much longer timeline and many millions more in CAPEX. We are grateful to the Northfil team for working with us to make this happen."
About Great Lakes Graphite: Great Lakes Graphite Inc. is an industrial minerals company focussed on bringing carbon products to a well defined market through a vertically integrated supply chain.
As there is currently no significant graphite production in North America, Great Lakes Graphite has the ability to become one of the first domestic suppliers to a growing regional customer base that requires high quality natural graphite, where pricing and demand continue to rise.
The Company, through strategic acquisitions and capable management is becoming a leader in the industrial minerals marketplace.
The Company through its Innovations Division is currently recommissioning an Ontario based Micronization Facility for re-start in late 2015 to achieve the following objectives:
- Establish a position in the upgraded graphite products market with North American customers.
- Create a competitive and disruptive advantage by leveraging existing assets.
- Pursue an accelerated timeline to cash flow and revenue by micronizing and upgrading flake graphite, enabled by supply agreements with current graphite producers.
- Develop customer relationships that will, in the longer term, position the Company to pursue off-take arrangements for Great Lakes' 100% owned Lochaber Graphite Deposit, located in SW Québec.
The Lochaber Graphite Deposit is located just 30km east of Ottawa, in southwestern Québec. The Company has also entered into option and joint venture agreements with Eloro Resources Inc. on the Summit-Gaber Cobalt property located in the La Grande Greenstone Belt in the Baie James region of Québec. Further information regarding Great Lakes can be found on the Company's website at: www.GreatLakesGraphite.com.
Great Lakes Graphite trades with symbol GLK on the TSX Venture Exchange and currently has 78,714,820 shares outstanding (107,602,456 fully diluted).
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.