Graphite One’s Customer Sampling and Ohio Factory Plans Advance Amid Tariff Setback

Graphite One ships 20-kg anode samples to six EV and battery firms, advances offtake talks, but loses 169.5% tariff protection after ITC ruling.

Graphite One has shipped commercially produced anode material samples of up to 20 kilograms to three electric-vehicle manufacturers and three battery companies, marking a tangible step toward building its first US domestic graphite supply chain. Yet the milestone is tempered by the collapse of a trade-case decision that would have slapped combined anti-dumping and countervailing duties of as much as 169.5 percent on Chinese anode imports — a protection that would have shielded the Alaskan miner’s long?term economics.

The six recipients are now evaluating the material against their own specifications, and the company has entered offtake negotiations with several of them. No binding contracts have been signed so far, but one relationship is already on a firmer footing: Graphite One has multiple supply agreements with luxury?EV maker Lucid, with deliveries of natural graphite for vehicle batteries scheduled to start in 2028.

The Ohio facility at the heart of the plan is designed to produce 10,000 tonnes of active anode material per year in its first phase, targeting a diversified product mix: 4,000 tonnes for energy?storage applications, 3,000 tonnes for fast?charging profiles, and 3,000 tonnes for high?energy?density cells. A second expansion phase, adding 25,000 tonnes of graphitization capacity, is penciled in for the third quarter of 2028.

From Warren to Conneaut — and a new logistics edge

The company secured the Ohio site on May 19, 2026, through a use agreement with the Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad Company, a subsidiary of Canadian National Railway. The location in Conneaut, Ashtabula County, replaces earlier plans in Warren, where the necessary power infrastructure could not be delivered in time. Chief Operating Officer Mike Schaffner said the new property, with direct access to Lake Erie and the Great Lakes shipping corridor, allows Graphite One to manage material flows efficiently and expand production capacity as demand grows.

$2.07 billion in government backing — but tariff cover is gone

The sharpest shift in the company’s regulatory landscape came on March 12, when the US International Trade Commission voted 2–1 that imports of Chinese active anode material do not materially injure or threaten to injure the domestic US industry. Although the Commerce Department had in February confirmed dumping and subsidies by Chinese exporters — which could have triggered combined duties of up to 169.5 percent — the negative ITC finding blocked the entire tariff measure. (The full ITC report, Publication 5719, was due by April 26.)

Existing 35-percent tariffs on Chinese anode imports remain in place, but the loss of the punitive anti-dumping layer leaves Graphite One almost entirely reliant on government?backed financing to make its Alaska?to?Ohio project economically viable. The US Export?Import Bank has issued letters of interest totaling $2.07 billion, with the latest increases raising potential support for the Alaska mine from $570 million to $670 million and for the planned Ohio anode plant from $325 million to $1.4 billion.

Competition heats up as two rivals join accelerated permitting

Adding to the pressure, two other US graphite projects — in Alabama and New York — received FAST?41 status in March 2026, granting them a streamlined federal permitting process. Graphite One’s own Graphite Creek deposit in Alaska was the first mining project from the state to be placed on the FAST?41 platform, back in June 2025. The current timeline targets a federal permit decision for Graphite Creek by September 2026, a milestone that will determine whether the integrated supply chain can move from the drawing board to construction.

Shareholder meeting and dilution

On June 26, 2026, shareholders will vote on executive compensation plans, including equity awards for the 2026 calendar year that are expected to be issued in July. After recent grants, Graphite One has 208,967,736 common shares outstanding, alongside 4,398,006 restricted share units, 4,873,272 performance share units, and 10,705,738 share options under the omnibus plan — a dilution?heavy structure typical of development?stage miners.

Stock under pressure

Despite a 4.9% gain on the day to €0.75, Graphite One shares remain 36.34% lower year?to?date and 52% below the 52?week high of €1.52 reached in late January. Market capitalisation stands at roughly C$248 million, with a price?to?book ratio of 2.41. The next set of catalysts will arrive in quick succession: the shareholder vote on June 26, the federal mine decision in September, and — most critically for commercial credibility — the conversion of customer tests into binding offtake agreements.