EcoGraf Limited announce that it has received notice from the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) that its patent application, filed on 1 November 2022, entitled “Method of Producing Purified Graphite” (US application number 17/626,425) has been examined and received a ‘Notice of Allowance' in the US. The US patent will issue shortly following payment of the issue fee. This is a very important step in the proposed commercialisation of EcoGraf HFfree™ technology, providing protection in the US of the patented methodology until about November 2042.

The commercialisation of the technology will also comply with US Treasury IRA guidance on new clean vehicle credit criteria to strengthen critical mineral supply chains. The method is positioned to be an alternative purification technology for the manufacturer of battery anode material used in lithium-ion batteries, the patent also protects the use of the technology in Lithium-ion battery anode recycling. Battery recycling is now recognised as an important part of transition to clean energy with increasing requirements in EU and US to achieve greater recycling.

EcoGraf's HFfree™ purification technology was developed by the Company in Australia in 2017 and has since been refined through extensive testing and analysis conducted in Australia, Europe and Asia. Patents and trademarks have been lodged by EcoGraf in all key battery markets to protect the IP associated with this process. Under its Patent Convention Treaty (PCT) filing, patent submissions have also been made in all key planned battery manufacturing hubs which include EU, Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, East Africa, South Africa and Australia.

To ensure the full protection of its technology in the US, EcoGraf has also filed a continuation application based on its present US patent application. EcoGraf's HFfree™ technology is an environmentally superior and cost-effective process for producing high quality battery anode material using natural flake graphite. The technology underpins vertically integrated battery anode development which the company is advancing the planned Product Qualification Facility (refer announcement September 2022) and working with groups to consider co-location of a commercial scale facilities in the global battery manufacturing hubs.