Alaska Governor says Graphite One’s mine ‘could provide enough graphite to meet the entire nation’s needs for a century’ – Richard Mills

2026.09.10

Graphite One’s (TSXV:GPH, OTCQX:GPHOF) proposed Graphite Creek mine could leave the United States self-sufficient in graphite for the next 100 years, thus eliminating the country’s dependence on China for the critical mineral.

Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy recently identified the Vancouver-based company’s Graphite Creek Project as a potentially significant domestic source of graphite, as the United States seeks to strengthen critical mineral supply chains and reduce reliance on foreign sources.

Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy Highlights Graphite One as Strategic to
U.S. Critical Mineral Security

Gov. Dunleavy made the comments in an Aug. 31 Fox News op-ed, stating “China is holding critical minerals hostage. Alaska can help end the threat,” highlighting Alaska’s ability to help secure US supplies of minerals essential to technology and national security. He later referenced Alaska’s graphite potential in a Fox News TV interview. 

Dunleavy noted Alaska hosts known resources of 57 of the 60 US government-designated critical minerals, and specifically highlighted Graphite One’s Graphite Creek Project north of Nome, Alaska:

“Among its many mineral deposits, Alaska holds a bountiful reserve of graphite in the aptly named Graphite Creek Project. New estimates suggest that this one reserve alone could provide enough graphite to meet the entire nation’s needs for a century.”

According to the US Geological Survey, Graphite Creek is the largest known graphite deposit in the United States and one of the largest globally. The USGS’s 2026 Mineral Commodity Summaries also reports that the United States remained 100% net import-reliant for natural graphite in 2025. 

“Governor Dunleavy’s comments underscore the strategic importance of Graphite Creek to the United States,” said Graphite One’s President and CEO Anthony Huston. “America remains entirely reliant on imports for natural graphite at a time when securing domestic supply is becoming increasingly important to advanced manufacturing, energy technologies and national security.”

“Graphite One is advancing a fully integrated U.S. supply chain – anchored by Graphite Creek in Alaska and advanced graphite materials manufacturing in Ohio – designed to transform a world-class American resource into secure American supply,” Huston continued.

“If America is serious about reducing its dependence on foreign graphite, domestic resources must be developed at scale. That is what Graphite One is being built to do.”

Sustained support for Graphite Creek

Dunleavy’s support for Graphite One’s domestic development strategy predates his latest comments.

He previously nominated Graphite Creek as a federal High-Priority Infrastructure Project. In June 2025, Graphite Creek was subsequently accepted as a “covered project” under the federal FAST-41 permitting process, becoming the first Alaska mining project to be listed on the FAST-41 Permitting Dashboard.

FAST-41 provides enhanced federal agency coordination, greater permitting transparency and a comprehensive permitting timetable for covered infrastructure projects.

Graphite Creek serves as the upstream anchor of Graphite One’s strategy to establish a complete US-based advanced graphite materials supply chain.

Graphite Creek mine

Located on the Seward Peninsula, the Graphite Creek property comprises 9,600 hectares of State of Alaska mining claims. The claim block consists of 176 claims. G1’s deposit is entirely on state land. 

The graphite zone is exposed on the surface and strikes east/northeast along the north face of the Kigluaik Mountains. The Feasibility Study pit and mineral reserve and resources footprint represents just 1.9 km of the 15.3-km-long electromagnetic anomaly (Figure 1).

Graphite One’s vertically integrated US supply chain strategy

Graphite One is advancing a vertically integrated domestic graphite strategy designed to reduce US dependence on foreign-sourced graphite and establish an American supply chain extending from raw material through advanced materials manufacturing.

The company’s strategy includes:

• Mining and processing natural graphite at Graphite Creek, Alaska

• Transporting graphite materials through the Port of Nome

• Manufacturing advanced graphite and anode materials in Ohio

• Potential co-located recycling of graphite and other battery materials

This integrated approach is designed to establish a domestic supply chain spanning resource development, advanced materials manufacturing and potential recycling — supporting the development of a circular US graphite materials economy. Progress continues to remain subject to project financing.

Strong bipartisan government support — significant de-risking

Graphite One has secured substantial, non-dilutive government backing that validates the project’s strategic importance and materially de-risks development:

• EXIM Bank: Non-binding Letters of Interest exceeding US $2 billion — a strong signal of financing support for a project of national importance.

• Department of Defense: Title III and Defense Logistics Agency funding totaling USD$42 million, including the $37.3 million grant that accelerated the completion of a Bankable Feasibility Study.

• FAST-41: Inclusion on the federal permitting dashboard, facilitating coordinated and timely interagency review.

• Bipartisan Backing: Broad support across administrations and Congress for domestic critical minerals development, particularly in the context of geopolitical supply chain risks.

This level of government engagement and funding is rare for a junior mining company and significantly enhances the project’s bankability and appeal to institutional capital.

In July, Graphite One announced a significant milestone in the development of its planned Active Anode Materials (AAM) facility in Conneaut, Ohio. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has determined the company’s air permit application is complete and has commenced technical review.

Graphite One Clears Key Ohio EPA Hurdle for Planned
Ohio Battery Materials Facility

Acceptance into technical review represents a key step in the Ohio permitting process and confirms the Ohio EPA has determined the application contains the information required to begin its detailed technical review, an important step toward issuance of the required air permit.

“Acceptance into technical review reflects the quality of the work completed by G1’s engineering and permitting teams,” said Mike Schaffner, G1’s Chief Operating Officer. “We appreciate Ohio EPA’s review and remain focused on advancing the project efficiently toward construction.”

The planned Conneaut facility is designed to produce synthetic graphite AAM, a critical battery material used in lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, grid-scale energy storage, and other applications. The initial phase is expected to produce approximately 10,000 tonnes per year, with planned expansion to 25,000 tpy. Graphite One’s development strategy allows the Ohio facility to move to production independently of the company’s Graphite Creek Project near Nome, Alaska, creating an earlier path to revenue than in traditional resource development projects.

Together, the company’s planned Graphite Creek Project and planned Ohio AAM facility are designed to establish the first fully integrated domestic US graphite supply chain — from mining graphite in Alaska to producing advanced battery materials in Ohio. This vertically integrated strategy is intended to strengthen US manufacturing competitiveness, reduce reliance on foreign supply chains, and improve long-term supply chain resilience.

This milestone further advances Graphite One’s integrated US graphite supply chain and complements ongoing permitting progress at the Graphite Creek project in Alaska. Subject to permitting, regulatory approvals and financing, synthetic graphite AAM production is expected to commence at the Ohio facility in Q4 2027, with natural graphite production at Graphite Creek targeted for 2029.

Under the Spotlight —
Graphite Creek Mine Project, Graphite One (TSXV:GPH)

This milestone follows a series of important project advancements throughout 2026 as Graphite One continues executing engineering, permitting, procurement, financing, and customer engagement activities on both its Alaska and Ohio projects.

“Today’s milestone is another demonstration of the disciplined execution of our strategy to build the first fully integrated domestic U.S. graphite supply chain,” said CEO Anthony Huston. “Every permitting, engineering, financing, and customer engagement milestone reduces execution risk and moves us closer to commercial production. Together, these parallel workstreams strengthens Graphite One’s position as a strategic domestic supplier of advanced graphite materials supporting America’s battery and energy storage industries. We remain focused on achieving additional project milestones throughout 2026 while creating long-term value for our shareholders, customers, and strategic partners.”

Also in July, Graphite One highlighted the significance of President Trump’s July 20 Executive Order, ‘Securing America’s Defense Supply Chains and Ensuring Domestic Acquisition of Critical Materials’.

Graphite One Highlights Strategic Alignment with White House Executive Order
Reinforcing U.S. Critical Minerals Supply Chain

The Executive Order expands federal efforts to strengthen domestic sourcing of critical materials essential to national defense and advanced manufacturing by reinforcing domestic procurement requirements, reducing reliance on foreign supply chains, accelerating qualification of new domestic suppliers and improving supply chain transparency. The United States remains 100% import dependent on natural graphite, one of the most strategically important critical minerals supporting defense systems, batteries, artificial intelligence infrastructure, grid-scale energy storage and advanced manufacturing.

Graphite One believes the Executive Order further reinforces the strategic importance of establishing a complete domestic graphite supply chain capable of supplying U.S. industries with secure, reliable and traceable graphite materials from mine to finished advanced graphite materials products.

“For more than a decade, Graphite One has been executing a strategy built around a simple premise — that the United States would ultimately require a secure, fully domestic graphite supply chain, said CEO Anthony Huston. “Today’s Executive Order is another important milestone supporting that long-term vision.”

The Executive Order builds upon a series of federal initiatives supporting domestic critical mineral development, including FAST-41 project designation, Defense Production Act programs, Department of Energy initiatives, Defense Logistics Agency engagement and EXIM Bank financing initiatives. Collectively, these actions reflect growing federal recognition that resilient domestic supply chains are fundamental to America’s economic competitiveness and national security.

Conclusion

China is by far the biggest graphite producer at about 80% of global production. It also controls almost all graphite processing, establishing itself as a dominant player in every stage of the supply chain.

China also accounts for 98% of announced anode manufacturing capacity expansions through 2030, according to the International Energy Agency.

China has imposed restrictions on Chinese graphite exports. Exporters must apply for permits to ship synthetic and natural flake graphite.

Up to now, the US has had no security of supply for graphite. The country has reached a point where much more graphite needs to be discovered and mined in the US.

Graphite One could take a leading role in loosening China’s tight grip on the US graphite market by mining feedstock from its Graphite Creek project in Alaska and shipping it to its planned graphite anode manufacturing plant in Ohio.

Consider: In 2025, the US imported 70,000 tonnes of natural graphite, of which 73.4% was flake and high-purity.

Graphite One’s Bankable Feasibility Study anticipates more than tripling the 53,000-tonne production rate in the Prefeasibility Study (PFS) to 175,000 tonnes. The Proven and Probable mineral reserve tonnage is 317% of the PFS reserve estimate. The Measured + Indicated resource tripled (322%) from the resource disclosed in the PFS.

This means Graphite One could have the capacity to not only meet the US’s annual graphite needs, but have extra to stockpile, around 100,000 tonnes each year. This additional graphite could be put to domestic usage or built up to accommodate future demand growth.

Graphite Creek has a current mine life of 20 years.

All of this is based on the results of just 1.9 km (~12%) of the 15.3-km-long geophysical anomaly. Graphite Creek is now triple the size when the US Geological Survey reported three years ago that it was the largest flake graphite deposit in the US. And it could get even bigger with further exploration. We are talking about a potential life of mine that provides all the graphite the US needs, spanning generations.

Graphite One releases Bankable Feasibility Study, advancing US graphite supply chain
— Richard Mills

US achieves security of graphite supply with G1 Feasibility Study
— Richard Mills

Graphite One Inc.
TSXV:GPH, OTCQX:GPHOF
2026.09.09 Share Price: Cdn$0.99
Shares Outstanding: 208.9m
Market Cap: Cdn$206.8m
GPH website

Richard (Rick) Mills
aheadoftheherd.com

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Richard does not own shares of Graphite One Inc. (TSXV:GPH). GPH is a paid advertiser on his site aheadoftheherd.com

This article is issued on behalf of GPH