Ottawa signed a seven-year term sheet with Nouveau Monde Graphite to place 30,000 tonnes a year of graphite concentrate with Canada and allied buyers. Of that total, 15,000 tpa are contracted on a take-or-pay basis at a fixed North American price. NMG also reset customer deals to keep its Phase 2 plan bankable, including 13,000 tpa of active anode material for Panasonic Energy and a 20,000 tpa concentrate line for Traxys.
Ottawa Ties Money To Contracts
The federal announcement bundled NMG into a first batch of 26 moves meant to unlock C$6.4 billion of critical mineral projects, with “offtake arrangements with the Government of Canada, Panasonic and Traxys,” plus more than C$35 million from the Canada Growth Fund and letters of interest from the Canada Infrastructure Bank and Export Development Canada.
Japan is flagged as an incoming investor alongside Panasonic and Mitsui. Ottawa is saying it will backstop volumes and finance to get graphite out of Quebec and into allied supply chains.
“Canada is proud to support Nouveau Monde Graphite and sign a strategic offtake agreement,” the energy minister said. The federal government will be the buyer of record if private demand hesitates, which lowers project finance risk and cost of debt.
This stack of contracts is procurement for the west’s future. Canada wants secure supply, Panasonic wants guaranteed anode tons, and NMG wants bankable cash flow. With firm volumes in hand, lenders can move to credit committees. That is the approach that allows a mine to be delivered on schedule.
Québec Permits Decide Pace
Québec’s environment ministry, MELCCFP, already issued the ministerial decree for Matawinie in 2021, authorizing 100,000 tpa of concentrate. That let NMG clear land, build the access road, and get the site construction ready. The decree helps to improve timelines, it enables work, and having infrastructure on the ground is a big win. The province still issues the specific construction and operating permits, so scheduling will be contingent on those papers and the financing closing.
Foreign money will shape pricing and offtake control at the margin, but Ottawa’s fixed price take or pay is the anchor. If Japan’s public and corporate money follows as signalled, Panasonic’s 13,000 tpa becomes harder to unpick, and Traxys’ 20,000 tpa gives NMG a second cash lane outside batteries. With those three, NMG says nearly all Phase 2 mine volumes are spoken for.
