EU anoints Sarytogan graphite venture a strategic project

Sarytogan Graphite’s flagship project in Kazakhstan is among the first group of 13 projects outside the European Union to win EU backing as a strategic project to secure its critical raw materials supply.

The company’s massive 229-million-tonne venture, which averages 28.9 per cent total graphitic carbon for 66Mt of graphite, has been accorded strategic project status under the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act.

Kazakhstan’s Vice-Industry and Construction Minister Olzhas Saparbekov (left) with EBRD Kazakhstan deputy head Askar Namazbayev, Sarytogan Graphite technical director Dr Waldermar Mueller, European Union ambassador Aleska Simkic and European Commission DG Grow director Joaquim Nunes de Almeida.

The Act designates strategic projects that will enable the EU to maintain or expand its capacity to extract, process and recycle critical raw materials, to diversify its supply sources and improve the reliability and security of its strategic materials supplies.

It follows a 2022 memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the EU and the Kazakh government to deepen cooperation and achieve closer integration of sustainable value chains in critical raw materials, batteries and renewable hydrogen.

‘The strategic project status validates Sarytogan’s natural graphite deposit as world-class.’

Sarytogan Graphite managing director Sean Gregory

The MoU seeks to bring together Kazakhstan’s extensive critical raw materials potential and the EU’s expertise in mining, processing, recycling and battery and hydrogen technologies.

The EU’s strategic project status is applied to projects which are – or are expected to become - technically feasible within a reasonable timeframe.

They must also demonstrate the capacity to meet expected production volumes and can be brought to sustainable production with a high level of confidence.

The strategic projects will be presented and discussed within a financing subgroup of the EU’s critical raw materials board, which can offer advice on project financing, including private and public funding sources.

The subgroup brings together relevant national promotional banks, the European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and private financial institutions.

Sarytogan Graphite managing director Sean Gregory said: “The strategic project status validates Sarytogan’s natural graphite deposit as world-class and highlights our vital role in supplying sustainable critical raw materials to Europe for battery and other strategic uses. We look forward to engaging with new opportunities under the Critical Raw Materials Act to deliver a sustainable supply of graphite to Europe and beyond.”

The EU is Kazakhstan’s leading trade and investment partner, according to the country’s Foreign Affairs Ministry. Trade turnover between Kazakhstan and the EU reached US$49.7 billion (A$76.45B) in the first nine months of 2024, a 16.9 per cent lift.

EU countries directly invested US$200.7B (A$308.71B) over the period, which was 47.8 per cent of the nation’s total gross direct foreign investment of US$419.5B (A$645.26B). More than 3000 European companies operate in Kazakhstan.

Europe needs raw materials to succeed in its industrial and climate ambitions, and to achieve that it requires stable, secure and diversified supply chains.

European Commission executive vice-president Stéphane Séjourné said the EU’s list of 13 strategic projects across the world, including Sarytogan’s graphite project, will help to reduce its supply dependencies and contribute to its economic security, while also creating growth, jobs and export opportunities in the source countries.

It could be a meaningful fillip for Sarytogan too, as it should open doors for the company to European funding – and give the company new opportunities to engage with its host nation and the wider EU market.

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