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- Syrah Resources (SYR) receives a US$102 million (A$145.9 million) binding loan from the US Department of Energy (DOE)
- The loan is for the initial expansion of Syrah’s Vidalia active anode material facility in Louisiana to a 11,250 tonnes per annum
- This is the first from the DOE’s advanced technology vehicles manufacturing (ATVM) loan program since 2011 and its first ever to a materials processing facility
- Syrah MD and CEO Shaun Verner says the loan validates the facility and allows the company to accelerate its growth strategy and support the EV and battery supply chain in the US
- Shares in Syrah are up 9.3 per cent, trading at $1.41 as of 1:40 pm AEST
Syrah Resources (SYR) has received a US$102 million (A$145.9 million) loan from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to expand its Vidalia active anode material (AMM) facility.
The binding loan facility was received by the company’s subsidiary Syrah Technologies and will boost expansion to an 11,250-tonne per annum AAM production capacity at Vidalia.
The loan is the first from the DOE’s advanced technology vehicles manufacturing (ATVM) loan program since 2011 and the first ever from the ATVM loan program to a materials processing facility.
The US$102 million loan includes up to US$98 million in loan advances to fund eligible capital costs for the Vidalia initial expansion, and approximately $4 million in maximum capitalised interest.
Key terms includes a fixed interest of 2.8 per cent from the date of each loan advance for the term of the loan at applicable long-dated US Treasury rates.
Quarterly loan interest and principal repayments will begin from October 20, 2024 and the loan has a maturity date April 20, 2032.
The company and the DOE aim for the loan to be effective by the end of the current quarter with the first advance from the loan within the December quarter, aligned with the capital spending program for the Vidalia initial expansion project.
Syrah Managing Director and CEO Shaun Verner said the loan agreement highlighted Vidalia’s strategic position in the US.
“It provides strong validation of Syrah, Vidalia and the Vidalia initial expansion.
“Importantly, the loan will allow Syrah to accelerate its growth strategy in its downstream business and support the rapidly growing EV and battery supply chain in the US.”
Finalisation of the DOE loan follows a 12-month process with the DOE’s Loan Programs Office. It has been approved by the Syrah Board, the Secretary of DOE and US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M Granholm.
Shares in Syrah were up 9.3 per cent, trading at $1.41 as of 1:40 pm AEST.
