Tokyo, February 5th (Argus) - On February 3rd, several Japanese and Australian companies reached an agreement to establish a supply chain for natural graphite anode materials between the two countries to ensure the stable supply of battery materials.
Japanese oil refiner Showa Denko Kogyo, trading company Marubeni, chemical enterprise NSC, and Australian developer Graphinex plan to establish the supply chain by mining natural graphite in Queensland, Australia, and supplying graphite anode materials to Japanese users.
The partners aim to achieve commercial production of graphite anodes and are exploring production bases for graphite-based anode materials in Japan. The relevant parties plan to build a graphite anode material production plant in Japan, with the goal of starting operations in 2028.
According to the arrangement, Showa Denko Kogyo and Graphinex will be responsible for mining graphite in Australia, while Marubeni and NSC will carry out the refining and processing of graphite in Japan.
Showa Denko Kogyo also invested in Graphinex in 2024 to participate in the graphite mining business in Australia.
As the use of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage systems for renewable energy continues to grow, the demand for graphite is expected to rise further. Japan has long relied on imports for graphite procurement and needs to ensure supply stability through diversified supply sources.
This cooperation aligns with the common goal of Japan and Australia to strengthen energy security cooperation and build a reliable critical mineral supply chain.
At the same time, Japan is seeking alternative sources of graphite imports to reduce its reliance on China, the world's largest producer and exporter of graphite, which currently implements export controls on some graphite products.
