Syrah Resources and Tesla Extend Deadline Again to Resolve Graphite Supply Agreement Dispute
Australia-based Syrah Resources said on Monday that it has agreed with Tesla to extend, for a third time, the deadline to resolve an alleged breach of their graphite supply agreement.
The 2021 offtake agreement, which covers the supply of 8 000 t/y of graphite over four years, is central to Syrah’s Vidalia anode material facility in Louisiana and underpins the company’s strategy to become the first major non-Chinese supplier of graphite to the United States.
Texas-headquartered Tesla issued its first notice of default in July 2025, alleging that Syrah failed to deliver conforming active anode material samples from the Vidalia processing facility for use in electric-vehicle batteries.
Under the latest amendment, the parties have agreed to extend the cure deadline to March 16, 2026, subject to approval from the US Department of Energy.
The original cure deadline of September 16 was first extended to November 15, before being pushed out again to January 16.
“While Syrah does not accept that it is in default under the offtake agreement, the parties have extended the cure date to March 16, 2026, and are closely collaborating to resolve the alleged default,” Syrah said in a statement.
The Vidalia facility is currently the only vertically integrated, large-scale active anode material operation outside China, providing a strategic alternative to Chinese-dominated graphite supply chains.
Tesla, led by Elon Musk, retains the right to terminate the supply agreement if Syrah’s active anode material fails to meet technical specifications by February 9.
Syrah’s shares fell 6.6% to A$0.285 in early trading on Monday, marking their lowest level since December 22, despite the broader mining sub-index (.AXMM) rising 0.6%.
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