Graphite One says it won a defense award to test Graphite Creek carbon in high heat

Graphite One (Alaska) Inc. said Monday that the Defense Logistics Agency, the military's supply chain agency, has awarded it a project to test whether carbon materials from its Graphite Creek deposit north of Nome can perform in high-temperature defense systems. The company did not say what the award is worth.

The work covers processing the material, testing how it handles heat and reporting the results, according to the company, which will partner with Idaho National Laboratory, a Department of Energy lab.

Graphite One calls it its third development agreement with the agency since 2023 but did not name the other two. Federal spending records show one earlier agency contract, $4.7 million in 2023 to develop a graphite-based fire suppressant. Also in 2023, the Defense Department awarded the company a $37.3 million Defense Production Act grant for a feasibility study. The latest federal records show $11.4 million of that grant paid out, and the grant's work period ended in August 2025.

The company says the U.S. Geological Survey has identified Graphite Creek as the nation's largest known graphite deposit. Its plan to ship material through the Port of Nome to manufacturing in Ohio remains subject to project financing, the company says.

The mine itself is still working through permits. A federal water permit decision has slipped to September 2027. At a June meeting, Teller residents pressed the company on risks to caribou, fish and marine mammals.