Australian-listed graphite producer Syrah Resources has secured a $53mn loan waiver from the US' International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), weeks after the firm triggered events of default on US government loans related to its Balama mine in Mozambique.
The firm declared a force majeure at the site on 12 December, as protests limited Balama mine access. Syrah has not defaulted on payment obligations related to its $150mn DFC loan or its $102mn US Department of Energy loan, the company said on 7 January.
DFC's waiver covers the first tranche of its loan to Syrah and is designed to fund working capital at Balama. Operational staff have left the mine, but security personnel remain on-site. Syrah will be able to access the rest of its DFC loan once production restarts at Balama, although the company has not announced a restart date.
Syrah stopped producing graphite at its Mozambican plant in July, owing to sufficient inventory for sales and low graphite fines demand. The company produced 24,000t of graphite at Balama during April-June and spent the following quarter running through its inventories. The firm had planned to restart graphite production at the site over September-December 2024 to replenish its stockpile.
Protests at Balama began in September, but escalated after Mozambique's highest court upheld the results of the country's October general election, returning the long-ruling Frelimo party to power. Operating conditions in Mozambique remain challenging because of the protests, Syrah said, with ongoing demonstrations following the elections continuing to cause widespread disruptions.
