As part of their operational transition and plant refurbishment program, Bass Metals Limited has made a purchase of two generators to provide power for Graphmada processing plant in Madagascar.

The two 800kva Caterpillar generators are expected to raise the quality and volume of saleable product by 30%, subsequently delivering a consistently higher-value product at their 6000 tonnes per annum (tpa) plant.

Tim McManus, CEO, Base Metals said, “The low capital cost purchase of these generators is a significant step in optimising the current operation and increasing annualised throughput at the processing plant.

With a strategy of making low capital investments to optimise an operating asset, combined with material increases in resource inventories of soft, easily mineable saprolitic ore, the company sees Graphmada as having a series of major competitive advantages to that of its peers who are over capitalising hard-rock deposits and who are heavily leveraged to single market sales strategies.”

The company has said that it looks forward to capturing a meaningful share of the market to supply high-grade large flake concentrates into traditional high value markets, such as crucibles and refractories.

It also seeks to be  the first to reliably supply to new markets such as the expandable graphite and lithiumion battery markets, without exposing its shareholders to single market sales risks.

Many other strides have been made to make Graphmada a recognised producer and exporter of graphite. The company has received  approval by the Board for the commissioning of a 12,000tpa drying, screening and packaging facility.

The facility will be capable of matching the refurbishment capacity of the existing plant, while providing start up capacity for the planned second processing plant to reach a nominal 20,000 to 24,000tpa total processing capacity from Graphmada.