Mozambique’s graphite production — a strategic mineral for electric vehicle battery manufacturing — reached 25,474 tonnes in the first half of 2026, surpassing the government’s full-year target by 72%.
Government execution data for January to June show that graphite output grew 278% compared with the 6,734 tonnes produced in the same period of 2025. The result corresponds to 172% of the annual target set for 2026, which stood at 14,815 tonnes.
According to the government report, the performance reflects the “operational consistency of the sector’s largest producer and the entry into the market of a new company in Niassa” — factors that contributed to the increase in national output.
The figures point to a recovery in a sector that has faced severe operational constraints in recent years and is considered strategic to the global supply chain for electric vehicle batteries.
In 2025, national graphite production had already risen 92%, to 67,078 tonnes, compared with 34,899 tonnes recorded in 2024. Even so, the level remained well below the all-time high of 165,946 tonnes reached in 2022.
Output fell to 97,346 tonnes in 2023 and declined further to 34,899 tonnes in 2024, before beginning a recovery trajectory.
Among the country’s leading producers is the Balama mine in Cabo Delgado, operated by Australian company Syrah Resources and considered one of the largest natural graphite operations in the world outside China.
Half-year results published by the company in August show that the mine’s operational recovery continued through 2026. Between January and June, gross production reached approximately 25,800 tonnes, nearly four times the 6,500 tonnes recorded in the same period of 2025.
Sales and shipments to customers totalled approximately 26,600 tonnes, compared with just 1,800 tonnes in the first half of the previous year.
Syrah said the results exceeded those recorded in the comparable period, which had been severely affected by a prolonged operational suspension. The company acknowledged, however, that the market continues to be constrained by moderate demand for natural graphite outside China, global oversupply, and competition from Chinese producers.
The company also highlighted progress at its Vidalia facility in the US state of Louisiana, which is dedicated to the production of active anode material — a key component used in electric vehicle battery manufacturing.
During the first half of the year, the Vidalia unit produced approximately 150 tonnes of anode material for customer qualification processes and to demonstrate the plant’s industrial capabilities.
According to Syrah, the first commercial sales of anode material produced in the United States — from graphite mined in Mozambique — are expected to begin in the second half of 2026.
The company’s strategy combines production from the Balama mine with battery materials manufacturing in the US, at a time when governments and automakers are seeking to diversify supply chains and reduce dependence on China.
New Investment in Niassa
In January this year, President Daniel Chapo inaugurated a Chinese-funded graphite processing plant in Niassa province, valued at approximately US$200 million.
Located in the Nipepe district, the facility has an installed capacity to process up to 200,000 tonnes of ore per year and is intended to locally transform graphite destined for higher value-added industrial applications. The plant currently employs more than 1,000 workers and plans to increase that figure to over 2,000 jobs when it reaches full capacity.
The entry of new operators, combined with the recovery of production at Balama, reinforces the importance of graphite among Mozambique’s strategic minerals and could increase the country’s participation in international battery and electric vehicle supply chains.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/09/21/oilgas/extractivas/producao-de-grafite-quase-quadruplicou-no-primeiro-semestre/
