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Publicerat: 2025-07-01 10:06:00
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1 July 2025
Beowulf Mining Plc
(“Beowulf” or the “Company”)
Grafintec Secures Site Reservation in City of Kotka for Graphite Anode Materials Plant
Beowulf (AIM: BEM; Spotlight: BEO) is pleased to announce that its wholly owned Finnish subsidiary, Grafintec Oy (“Grafintec”), has signed a site reservation agreement with the City of Kotka in southern Finland (the “Agreement”). The Agreement secures a Site on Plot 285-46-168-3 in the Keltakallio industrial area (the “Site”), marking a major step forward in the establishment of the Graphite Anode Materials Plant (“GAMP”).
The reservation agreement
The Agreement was signed on 1 July 2025 and provides an initial 12-month reservation period, with the possibility for further extensions. In the months ahead, Grafintec will collaborate closely with the City of Kotka and key stakeholders, including local environmental authorities, as it advances its Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (“ESIA”). The Keltakallio industrial area was selected following an extensive evaluation of a number of potential sites across Finland and further afield. The Site spans approximately 13 hectares and is situated directly southwest of the site where Easpring Finland New Materials Oy (“Easpring”) began construction of a cathode active material plant in April 2025.
Figure 1: View of Keltakallio area looking to the north
The Kotka-Hamina region
The broader Keltakallio industrial zone covers an area of 260 hectares and includes a plot designated for large-scale battery manufacturing facilities, reinforcing the area's position as an emerging hub for Europe’s battery value chain. Keltakallio benefits from exceptional infrastructure, strategic location, and excellent logistics, with direct access to Finland’s largest container port, the Port of Hamina-Kotka, which ensures efficient transport of raw materials and finished products. The site also offers reliable access to cost-effective renewable energy and water, supporting Grafintec’s commitment to sustainable and responsible operations.
Figure 2: The Kotka-Hamina area
The Kotka-Hamina region, comprising five municipalities, is located 100 kilometres (“km”) to the east of Helsinki in southern Finland. The region is supported by Cursor Ltd. (https://www.cursor.fi/), an organisation focused on delivering economic growth through supporting business and tourism in the area. The Cursor team is the driving force behind the Power Coast initiative, seeking to create a major battery cluster in the Kotka-Hamina region.
Ed Bowie, Chief Executive Officer of Beowulf, commented:
“I am delighted to announce that we have reached this agreement with the City of Kotka, and I would like to thank the Mayor, all the dedicated municipality staff and the Cursor team for their support.
“We look forward to contributing to the development of the Power Coast battery cluster and supporting the economic growth of the region, whilst drawing on the strategic location of the site to maximise the GAMP’s value potential.”
Rasmus Blomqvist, Managing Director of Grafintec, commented:
“This agreement marks another important milestone in Grafintec’s strategy to establish a leading presence in Europe’s fast-growing battery value chain. The strategic location in Kotka, near the Port of Hamina–Kotka and adjacent to major battery markets, provides exceptional infrastructure and logistics advantages. With environmental and technical workstreams well underway, and active engagement with stakeholders and funding bodies, Grafintec is well positioned to advance its sustainable anode materials project through the next phases of development.”
Esa Sirviö, Mayor of the of City of Kotka, commented:
“The land reservation for Grafintec Oy in Keltakallio is a concrete example that we are on the right path. The Power Coast concept appears to be working, and the site developed for battery industry investments is clearly attracting interest. The City of Kotka, Cursor Oy, and the broader city group will continue developing the area along this strategic path.”
David Lindström, CEO of Cursor Oy, commented:
“The battery cluster emerging in the Kotka-Hamina region is progressing steadily. We are very pleased that Grafintec recognises the strengths of the region and is joining the Power Coast partnership. Cursor will continue working closely with the company to ensure smooth progress to the next phases.”
About Grafintec
Grafintec is positioning itself as a future leading independent producer of high-performance anode materials, supporting the rapid expansion of Europe’s lithium-ion battery industry. The Company is developing a cost-efficient and environmentally sustainable processing technology, underpinned by Finland’s abundant and low-cost renewable energy. Unlike conventional methods, Grafintec’s Graphite Anode Materials Plant (“GAMP”) process avoids the use of highly toxic reagents and energy-intensive operations. Instead, it utilises readily available chemicals, primarily sodium hydroxide and sulphuric acid under low to moderate temperature conditions.
Grafintec has also focused on optimising the GAMP to maximise the recycling of reagents, commercialise by-products and minimise any waste products. The feedstock for the plant is already high grade at ~95% fixed carbon content and therefore contains limited impurities. The primary reagent used in the process is sodium hydroxide and optimisation work as demonstrated that more than 80% of sodium hydroxide used in the process can be recycled and reused, both reducing the requirement for primary sodium hydroxide and also minimising the waste stream. Limestone, a by-product of the process can be utilised to neutralise acidic wastewater streams.
The purification process, which involves a series of caustic and acidic washes to remove impurities, generates both acidic and caustic wastewaters. These are blended to produce a neutral water with contaminant levels that are well within the limits for safe discharge into the municipal sewerage system. Further optimisation work is planned to assess whether this final wastewater stream can be treated in-house and reused in the process. While this closed-loop approach requires further development, it represents another step toward reducing water consumption and improving overall sustainability.
In early 2025, Grafintec successfully completed a Pre-Feasibility Study (“PFS”), delivering exceptionally strong economics, including a post-tax Net Present Value (NPV8) of €924 million and a post-tax Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 37% over 25 years for Phase 1 production of 25,000 tonnes per year of Coated Spherical Graphite (“CSPG”).
Phase 1 represents a planned investment of €225 million and will create 85 direct jobs. The subsequent Phase 2 expansion is expected to increase total investment to €675 million and grow the workforce to approximately 250. In addition, the two-year construction period will deliver significant employment opportunities and broader economic benefits to the Kotka region
Enquiries:
Beowulf Mining plc | |
Ed Bowie, Chief Executive Officer | ed.bowie@beowulfmining.com |
SP Angel | |
(Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker) | |
Ewan Leggat / Stuart Gledhill / Adam Cowl | Tel: +44 (0) 20 3470 0470 |
Alternative Resource Capital | |
(Joint Broker) | |
Alex Wood | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7186 9004 |
BlytheRay | |
Tim Blythe / Megan Ray | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7138 3204 |
About Beowulf Mining plc
Beowulf Mining is a mining company with main activities in exploration and development in Sweden, Finland, and Kosovo. Beowulf's portfolio is diversified by commodity, geography, and stage of development of the projects, and consists primarily of iron ore, graphite, gold, and base metals. Beowulf Mining is headquartered in London, England.