Sarytogan Graphite hits 41% graphite in Kazakhstan
- Doug Bright
- Oct 7
- 3 min read
Sarytogan Graphite’s (ASX: SGA) first batch of assays from 20 drill holes of its reserve drill out program at the company’s namesake project in central Kazakhstan has thrown up a compelling crop of impressive intercepts and grades.
One hole revealed 49.1m assaying a stellar 30.8% TGC from 1 metre depth and that included an even higher-grade 15.4m zone going 35.6% TGC from 20.6m. The peak grade within that hole came courtesy of a run of 9.6m grading a whopping 41.3% TGC from 40.5m, which, ominously, ended in mineralisation.
Another three other holes also included TGC grades of 40% or higher. One 5.9m stretch assayed up at 40.18% TGC from 7.4m, a 5.7m hit came in at 40.36% TGC from 18.5m and another 13.9m run graded 40.29% TGC from 15m depth.
The campaign follows and builds on the company’s August 2024 pre-feasibility study (PFS) maiden ore reserve estimate of 8.6Mt at 30% total graphitic carbon (TGC) for a ridiculously high 60-year initial mine life – and that only accounts for 4% of the estimated mineral resource, pointing to a potential multi-generational expandability.
The program aims to infill the first 25 years of mining to upgrade the current 229Mt at 28.9% TGC indicated and inferred mineral resource and the 8.6Mt assaying 30% TGC probable ore reserve for the upcoming definitive feasibility study (DFS), due in mid-2026.
The first batch of results from the Reserve Definition Drilling campaign have been received. The results have consistently returned thick intersections of high-grade graphite, a reminder of this special ore body’s status as the world’s highest-grade graphite JORC Resource. The results will feed into a planned Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve upgrade as part of the DFS underway.
Sarytogan Graphite Managing Director Sean Gregory
Results from a further 17 holes are pending. Once all drilling and analytical data is to hand, the results are expected to drive a re-estimation of the mineral resource and ore reserve, with a strong anticipation they will enhance confidence in the project’s scale and economics.
The deposit’s exceptional purity – shown in flotation testwork to attain up to 99.9992% or “five nines purity” carbon - via thermal purification without chemical pre-treatment, positions it for premium markets that could include use in lithium-ion and other new generation batteries and in nuclear applications.
Sarytogan plans to produce microcrystalline graphite at up to 90% TGC, ultra-high purity fines and spherical purified graphite for use in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
The company’s eponymous high grade graphite project, 190km from Karaganda in the vast Central Asian nation of Kazakhstan, is backed by the European Union’s (EU) Critical Raw Materials Act and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) investment, highlighting its strategic role in supplying sustainable battery materials.
As a multilateral developmental London-based investment bank, the EBRD uses investment as a tool to build market economies. Initially focused on the countries of the former Eastern Bloc, it has expanded to support development in more than 30 countries from Central Europe to Central Asia.
Final preparations for Sarytogan’s DFS engineering contract are underway, supported by ongoing water drilling, metallurgical testwork and power and transportation studies.
The company’s graphite project stands out with an impressive world-class mineral resource totalling 229 million tonnes at an almost unheard of grade of 28.9% TGC, of which just 4% has been upgraded to reserve classification.
The deposit’s remarkable purity, combined with its substantial scale, positions it favourably to meet the swelling demands driven by the global shift towards EVs and broader electrification.
As markets seek reliable, sustainable sources for both energy generation and storage, Sarytogan’s high-grade graphite play emerges as a key asset in the growing sustainable electrification sector.
EU support and more drilling results on the horizon only add to the buzz around the expectation that big things could be coming from Kazakhstan, with significant upside remaining as more results flow in.
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