Westwater Resources Supports Office of the United States Trade Representative Decision to Implement Section 301 Tariffs on Natural Graphite

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09/18/2024 - 11:00 AM

Modified Section 301 tariffs will implement a new 25% tariff on natural graphite imports from China.
Section 301 tariffs play a critical role in driving demand for U.S.-produced anode materials.

CENTENNIAL, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Westwater Resources, Inc. (NYSE: American: WWR), an energy technology and battery-grade natural graphite company (“Westwater Resources” or “Westwater”), supports the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) decision to proceed with Section 301 tariffs on commodity imports from China, including lithium-ion batteries and natural graphite.

Pursuant to the terms of Section 301, three new natural graphite products from China will be subject to a 25% tariff. Natural graphite is imported in a variety of forms under several Harmonized Tariff Schedule import codes. Tariffs on some forms of graphite, including CSPG (coated natural graphite anode material), already went into effect on June 14, 2024. This new decision by the USTR will go into effect in 2026 and subjects the several new forms of natural graphite to the same 25% tariff.

Jon Jacobs, Westwater’s Chief Commercial Officer, commented, “Westwater has built great momentum in constructing its U.S. natural graphite processing plant and securing offtake deals for the sale of all planned CSPG and Fines production during the initial phase of the Kellyton graphite plant through 2031. We believe the U.S. Section 301 tariffs are a critical and important component in accelerating demand for domestically produced natural graphite.”

A link to the S&P Global story can be found here: US to go ahead with modified Section 301 tariffs on Chinese steel, aluminum, critical minerals | S&P Global Commodity Insights (spglobal.com).

About Westwater Resources, Inc.

Westwater Resources is an energy technology company that is focused on developing battery-grade natural graphite. Westwater Resources’ primary project is the Kellyton Graphite Processing Plant that is under construction in east-central Alabama. In addition, Westwater Resource’s Coosa Graphite Deposit is the largest and most advanced natural flake graphite deposit in the contiguous United States — and is located across 41,965 acres (~17,000 hectares) in Coosa County, Alabama. For more information, visit westwaterresources.net.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions and are identified by words such as “believes,” “accelerating,” “planned,” “momentum,” and other similar words. Forward-looking statements in this release include, among other things, statements concerning: Westwater’s future sales of CSPG and Fines products to customers, including the amounts, timing, and types of products included within those sales; the planned annual production from Phase I of Kellyton Graphite Plan; and future demand of domestic graphite products. Westwater cautions that there are certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information that has been provided. The reader is cautioned not to put undue reliance on this forward-looking information, which is not a guarantee of future performance and is subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside the control of Westwater; accordingly, there can be no assurance that such suggested results will be realized. Additional risks facing Westwater‘s future prospects are discussed in the Westwater Resources, Inc. Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and subsequent securities filings.