Graphite One's Ohio Bet Is Quietly Outpacing Its Alaska Flagship
Published on 08/15/2026 at 16:04 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
There is a certain symmetry in building America's next-generation battery materials supply chain on the very ground where the old energy economy once stacked its coal. That is precisely what Graphite One is doing in Conneaut, Ohio, on a CN rail-served parcel along Lake Erie — and the company's own timeline suggests this unglamorous industrial site may deliver results before its more celebrated Alaska project ever breaks ground.
Ohio's Permitting Machine Grinds Ahead
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency confirmed in mid-July that Graphite One's air permit application for the planned active anode materials facility in Conneaut is complete and has entered technical review. That milestone followed the company's securing of the industrial site in late June, complete with direct rail access, Great Lakes shipping capability, and existing high-capacity power infrastructure. Geotechnical drilling is finished, and the environmental review is targeting completion in the first quarter of 2027.
Company COO Mike Schaffner recently confirmed that engineering design for the plant is underway, with completion expected within six months. Community meetings in the region are slated for late this year or early 2027. The company has also signed an engineering contract with a leading anode plant design firm, aiming to establish 25,000 tonnes of annual domestic synthetic graphite capacity by the fourth quarter of 2028. Production of synthetic anode active material is targeted to begin in Q4 2027, while natural graphite output at Graphite Creek is not expected until 2029.
The first expansion phase at Conneaut is planned for roughly 10,000 tonnes per year, with a later scale-up to 25,000 tonnes — and the Ohio site's broader plan contemplates up to 100,000 tonnes of annual anode active material production.
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The EXIM Backing That Changes the Math
The financing picture has become the cornerstone of the investment thesis. The U.S. Export-Import Bank has expanded its letter of intent for Graphite Creek to $670 million and, more significantly, has signaled $1.4 billion in potential financing for the Ohio facility under the "Make More in America" initiative, with a 15-year tenor. Together, those commitments total $2.07 billion in possible EXIM support — roughly 70 percent of the project's entire capital requirements.
Graphite One plans to file formal EXIM applications later this year. The company also points to two Department of Defense grants — one under the Defense Production Act, another from the Defense Logistics Agency — plus its listing in the federal FAST-41 program for expedited permitting.
The scale of government-backed debt financing meaningfully de-risks the project, assuming the applications are ultimately approved. It also signals strategic interest at the highest levels of U.S. critical minerals policy.
A Stock Caught Between Washington and Reality
The market's response to all this activity has been characteristically erratic. The stock closed Friday at EUR 0.5890, up 6.1 percent on the day, extending a 9.1 percent gain over seven days and a 17 percent advance over the past month. A roughly month-old executive order from President Trump on securing American defense supply chains has helped lift the shares by 17.3 percent since its signing.
Yet the year-to-date picture remains sobering: the stock is still down 53 percent since January, trading 29 percent below its 200-day moving average. The 12-month range stretches from EUR 0.4200 to EUR 1.59, with the shares currently closer to the lower end. The market has clearly priced in the grinding, incremental nature of permitting work — the stock barely moved on the Ohio EPA's completeness determination, slipping 1.0 percent.
Alaska Remains the Bigger Lever — and the Bigger Question
Graphite Creek continues through the FAST-41 federal review process, with a projected federal decision date of September 29, 2026. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is leading the reviews, currently listed as "in progress" on the federal dashboard. That date matters, but it is only an intermediate step in a process that can stretch indefinitely.
Beyond graphite, the company reported in November the discovery of rare earth elements in drill core from the same Alaska deposit north of Nome — including the five key magnet rare earths: neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, and samarium. That potentially opens a second revenue stream alongside graphite, though its economic significance has yet to be quantified. The July release of a feasibility study for Graphite Creek adds further technical substance.
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The contrast between the two projects is now stark. Ohio offers verifiable progress with concrete dates through 2027 and 2028. Alaska offers a larger potential prize, but one that remains contingent on permitting outcomes and timelines that have a habit of slipping. For investors willing to hold through the volatility, the near-term story is increasingly being written on the shores of Lake Erie — not the tundra of the Bering Strait.
