• Minister of Minerals officiated at a well-attended formal groundbreaking ceremony
• Groundbreaking ceremony marks official start of Early Works program
• Significant attendance including Korean Ambassador and POSCO International representatives

Black Rock Mining Ltd (ASX: BKT) has announced that a formal groundbreaking ceremony was held at the Mahenge Graphite Project (Mahenge or the Project) on 9 October 2025, marking the official start of the Early Works program for the Project. The event was officiated by the Minister of Minerals, the Hon. Anthony Mavunde, and was attended by senior officials, the Company's Board and executives, as well as representatives from the Korean Ambassador and POSCO International (POSCO). The Early Works program is directed at completing sufficient works to support a rapid ramp up of construction activity once Black Rock is fully funded and then makes a Final Investment Decision (FID). Mahenge (Black Rock 84%) is expected to contribute significantly to the development of the Ulanga region through direct development and infrastructure support, creating over 400 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) jobs for Module 1, rising to over 900 FTE when all four Modules are fully operational. A key element of the Project is the development of a 220kV high voltage lateral from Ifakara to Mahenge, which will ensure the Project is globally competitive and positioned in the lower quartile of the cost curve. The groundbreaking ceremony was also attended by the Korean Ambassador, reflecting the Republic of Korea's chairmanship of the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) and its shared commitment to building more secure, diversified, and sustainable critical mineral supply chains. POSCO, which is contracted to take all fines from the Project, has also announced its intention to build a new Spherical Purified Graphite (SPG) plant to support its existing 70ktpa Sejong anode plant in Korea.