Vianode, an advanced battery materials company (above), announces significant progress on project financing for its planned North American, large-scale synthetic-graphite plant. Euler Hermes AG confirms that Vianode is eligible for a loan guarantee of up to US$300 million.
Vianode’s North American facility is designed for an initial annual capacity of approximately 70,000 tons of synthetic graphite with planned production start in H2 2027. The plant represents a multi-billion-dollar investment. The loan guarantee relates to the procurement of production equipment for the plant.
“The endorsement from Euler Hermes AG is an important step in establishing the overall funding for Vianode’s synthetic-graphite plant in North America. It complements multiple advanced discussions with export credit agencies, commercial banks and stakeholders within the battery and EV value chain to ensure robust project financing of our facility which will provide local supply of anode graphite. Today, this critical battery material is manufactured at scale almost exclusively in Asia,” says Howard Ormonroyd, CFO at Vianode.
Vianode recently entered into a multi-billion-dollar long-term supply agreement with General Motors for EV battery-grade anode graphite through 2033. Vianode is also in the final stages of the site selection for the plant near the US.-Canadian automotive cluster and the company is currently building the local project organization.
Anode graphite is the largest component of a lithium-ion battery by weight and is a vital material in battery and EV supply chains. Vianode produces synthetic anode graphite with a 90% lower CO2 footprint than conventional production methods. Synthetic graphite is manufactured in high-temperature production processes and differs from natural graphite typically mined from carbon-rich rock formations.
Vianode is currently producing anode graphite at Via ONE, the first full-scale production plant at Herøya, Norway, which started production in 2024 and at its industrial pilot plant in Kristiansand, Norway, since 2021. Vianode’s Technology Center opened in the same city in 2022.