(Ecofin Agency) - The U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has approved a $150 million loan for Australian graphite mine owner Syrah Resources. However, the ongoing political crisis in Mozambique has halted the mine's operations, blocking part of this funding.

On January 7, 2025, Syrah Resources announced that it cannot access future disbursements of the $150 million DFC loan while its operations in Mozambique remain suspended. For the past three months, the country has been dealing with a post-electoral crisis that affected various mining companies active in the region.

Syrah and DFC have agreed to a waiver of the events of default under Syrah's DFC loan, subject to certain conditions.

Read the full $SYR release: https://t.co/eluDYW29gl pic.twitter.com/DTBJQZ0ZvS

— Syrah Resources (@SyrahResources) January 6, 2025

Syrah and DFC have agreed to a waiver of default events under Syrah's loan, but certain conditions apply.

The DFC released $53 million last November–already available in Syrah's accounts. Nevertheless, Syrah has declared "force majeure" at its Balama graphite mine, allowing it to default on the DFC loan if necessary. However, Syrah has not opted for this route and confirms it is up to date with its loan payments.

Operations at the Balama mine are on hold due to protests in the area, which security forces are struggling to manage amid the protests that broke out after the recent elections. Consequently, Syrah could not produce graphite in December to restock its inventory, which is now being sold based on market demand. For nearly two years, the company has intermittently operated its mine in an oversupplied market.

This article was initially published in French by Emiliano Tossou