China, US, India, France compete for SL’s graphite deposits

• Sri Lanka has high-quality vein graphite in rich deposits
• Canadian and Australian companies involved at the moment
• Over  3,000 abandoned pits in most parts of the country

By Kelum Bandara   

In another example of the global spotlight on Sri Lanka’s  strategic assets and resources, China, India, the United States and  France are in a competition to secure investments in the country’s  graphite sector, the Daily Mirror learns.  

This is in addition to Canadian and Australian companies involved in the industry at the moment.  

According to experts, Sri Lanka has high-quality vein graphite in rich deposits.  

Asked for a comment in this regard, Director General of the  Geological and Mines Survey Bureau Prof. Ranjith Premasiri confirmed  that companies from India and China are among the foreign investors  interested in this sector in Sri Lanka at the moment.  

“We must see who is doing maximum value addition and who is  using these for advanced Industrial applications. Also, we have over  3,000 abandoned pits in most parts of the country. So we can demand it,”  he said.  

Recently, an initial discussion was conducted between  officials from the Indian Government and the Bureau to see the  possibilities of developing the graphite industry in the country. During  the discussion, it has mainly been discussed to collaborate on  developing exploration and mining technologies, such as the use of  advanced airborne geophysical exploration techniques for exploring  vein-type graphite deposits in Sri Lanka. The two parties considered  about maximum value addition of graphite to use in modern industries and the possibility of starting graphite-based industries such as EV batteries  and lubricants.