Blencowe says Uganda graphite excels in military battery tests

Blencowe Resources Plc said that further test work on its Orom-Cross graphite project in Uganda has demonstrated "superior performance" across multiple battery technologies, following recent announcements about defense-focused coatings and other military platforms.

In a statement released Aug. 27, the London-listed company said it is working with US specialists Apollo Energy Systems Inc. and American Energy Technologies to develop a laboratory demonstration prototype targeting high-performance military battery specifications set by the US Defence Logistics Agency. Blencowe said the next step—subject to successful completion of the prototype—would be a US pilot production line capable of producing 100 lead-acid cells per month.

The company said the latest results confirm Orom-Cross graphite's versatility across applications, including advanced lead-acid batteries for grid energy storage and data centers, as well as other specialized battery and defense-related uses. Blencowe added that the test outcomes broaden sales channels that it believes could support higher-value offtakes.

A key element of the company's commercial strategy is the planned USPG beneficiation process in Uganda, under which the company expects to generate spheroidization rejects. Blencowe said these rejects, produced within the beneficiation stream, would be used as a performance-enhancing additive in advanced lead-acid batteries manufactured by Apollo—creating an additional higher-value outlet for about 30% of the end product from the facility.

Blencowe executive chairman Cameron Pearce said the program opens "another significant potential market opportunity" in the large lead-acid battery sector and added that the findings differentiate Orom-Cross in higher-value Western markets outside China's supply chain.

"As we move the project towards first production, we will keep adding further options to our broader marketing strategy, particularly in higher value Western markets. These results also continue to validate the quality of our product and demonstrate how Orom-Cross can successfully differentiate from peers in what it sells and to whom," Pearce added.

According to the definitive feasibility study released in December 2025, the Orom-Cross project could produce 20,000 metric tons per year of graphite concentrate in phase one, then scale to 70,000 mt/year of concentrate and 20,000 mt/year of uncoated spherical purified graphite in phase two. The company said the initial development is designed for an estimated 15-year mine life, with a long-term pathway to expand the project in phases toward 175,000 mt/year of concentrate and 80,000 mt/year of purified products.

In January 2026, Blencowe said phase one could be fast-tracked to begin in the first half of 2027, with phase two planned to follow two years later.

To date, the company has signed graphite offtake agreements with Yunasko, Perpetuus Advanced Materials, Qingdao TaiDa Carbon, Apollo Energy Systems and Jilin New Technology Graphite.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed natural flake graphite at $445/mt FOB China on Aug. 27, stable day over day but up $5/mt week over week. The price reflected the spot value of natural flake graphite with 94%-95% carbon content and a minus-100 mesh size, delivered to Qingdao port.