NextSource Materials Announces Completion of 2.6MW Solar Farm at Molo Graphite Mine in Madagascar
NextSource Materials Announces Completion of 2.6MW Solar Farm
at Molo Graphite Mine in Madagascar
NEWS RELEASE – TORONTO, July 6, 2023
NextSource Materials Inc. (TSX:NEXT) (OTCQB:NSRC F) (“NextSource” or the “Company”) is pleased to
announce that construction of the solar farm for the solar hybrid power plant (the “Solar Hybrid Plant”) at the
Company’s Molo Graphite mine in Madagascar has been completed.
The Solar Hybrid Plant is owned and operated by CrossBoundary Ene rgy (CBE) under a 20 -year power
purchase agreement and consists of the 2.6 MW solar farm, a 3.1 MW thermal facility (diesel generators installed
prior to mine commissioning), and a 1 MWh battery energy storage system (“BESS”), which is expected to arrive
in the next few weeks.
The solar farm was constructed by CBE using local labour and comprises a total of 4,902 photovoltaic panels,
covering 12,663 square metres, installed on ballasted mounting systems. The 2.6 MW solar farm is expected
to produce approximately 4 GWh of clean energy per year, reducing the mine’s all-in sustaining costs, and is
expected to reduce carbon emissions by 2,275 tonnes annually. Final electrical interconnections between the
solar farm with the mine are now underway and are expected to be completed within the coming weeks.
The Solar Hybrid Plant is designed to generate 33% of the Molo mine’s steady -state power requirements from
renewable energy. The solar facility together with load balancing provided by the BESS will be capable of
supplying up to 100% of the plant’s power requirements during peak daylight hours, with t he thermal facility
supplying all off peak power requirements, thereby ensuring an uninterrupted power supply to the mine.
Solar Farm with Molo Mine in Background
NextSource and CBE are committed to optimizing the solar component and increasing the amount of renewable
energy available to the mine, which would include the e xpansion of the solar farm and the potential addition of
wind turbines. In support of this, CBE has installed a wind measuring LIDAR device to evaluate the wind
resource at the site and studying the feasibility of adding wind generation in the short term . As part of any
potential future expansion of the Molo mine, the Company has set a goal of increasing the percentage generated
by renewable power to at least 50 percent.
ABOUT NEXTSOURCE MATERIALS INC.
NextSource Materials Inc. is a battery materials development company based in Toronto, Canada that is intent
on becoming a vertically integrated global supplier of battery materials through the mining and value -added
processing of graphite and other minerals.
The Company’s Molo graphite project in Madagascar is one of the largest known and highest -quality projects
globally, and the only one with SuperFlake® graphite. Phase 1 of the Molo mine is in the commissioning phase.
The Company is also developing a significant downstream graphite value-add business through the staged
rollout of Battery Anode Facilities capable of large-scale production of coated, spheronized and purified graphite
for direct delivery to battery and aut omotive customers, outside of existing Asian supply chains, in a fully
transparent and traceable manner.
NextSource Materials is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol “NEXT” and on the
OTCQB under the symbol “NSRCF".
For further information about NextSource visit our website at www.nextsourcematerials.com or contact us at
+1.416.364.4911 or email Brent Nykoliation, Executive Vice President at [email protected] or
Craig Scherba, President & CEO at [email protected].
Safe Harbour: This press release contains statements that may constitute “forward -looking information” or “forward -looking statements”
within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking information or statements. Forward looking statements and information are frequently characterized by words such as “plan”,
“expect”, “project”, “intend”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “potent ial”, “possible” and other similar words, or statements that certain
events or conditions “may”, “will”, “could”, or “should” occur. Forward-looking statements include any statements regarding, among others,
timing of on-site construction including the processing plant and installation thereof, delivery and installation of the auxiliary buildings and
structures, delivery and construction of the Solar Hybrid Battery System, shipping of all plant infrastructure to site, all re-assembly and
commissioning of the Molo Project, timing of construction and completion of the Mauritius BAF and proposed timing of future locations of
additional BAFs, timing and completion of front-end engineering and design and ESIA permitting, the economic results of the BAF Technical
Study including capital costs estimates, operating costs estimates, payback, NPV, IRR, production, sales pricing and working capital
estimates, the construction and potential expansion of the BAFs, expansion plans, as well as the Company’s intent on becoming a fully
integrated global supplier of critical battery and technology materials. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and
assumptions that involve a number of risks, which could cause actual results to vary and, in some instances, to differ materially from those
anticipated by the Company and described in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. No assurance can be given
that any of the events anticipated by the forward -looking statements will transpire or occur or, if any of them do so, what benefits the
Company will derive there from. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release
and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the forward-looking statements, whether because
of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. Although the forward -looking
statements contained in this news release are based on what management believes are reasonable assumptions, the Company canno t
assure investors that actual results will be consistent with them. T hese forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news
release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Subject to applicable securities laws, th e Company does
not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring
after the date of this news release.