Graphite One Grants Millions in Options Despite 46% Stock Rout as Ohio and Alaska Project Clocks Tick

The board of Graphite One has authorised nearly 5.6 million new stock options for its executive team, splitting them evenly between time-vested and performance-based awards. An external consultant is also receiving an additional one million shares. The generous pay package comes at a time when the company’s equity has lost more than 45% of its value since the start of the year, closing on Wednesday at €0.64 – a level that sits almost 60% below the 52-week high of €1.59 hit in January.

The compensation plan is designed to lock in key personnel until commercial production begins, a milestone that hinges on two concurrent industrial builds. In Ohio, Graphite One has signed an engineering contract for its active anode material facility. The plant will be constructed in two phases: an initial annual capacity of 10,000 tonnes is slated to come online by the fourth quarter of 2027, followed by an expansion to 25,000 tonnes per year by the end of 2028.

The upstream piece of the puzzle lies in Alaska, where the company’s Graphite Creek mine is undergoing an accelerated permitting process under the FAST‑41 programme. The U.S. Army is currently reviewing the approval, and a final Record of Decision is scheduled for 29 September 2026. That date is widely seen as the make‑or‑break catalyst for the entire project, since Graphite One’s strategy of becoming a fully integrated North American graphite producer depends on synchronising Alaska’s ore supply with Ohio’s processing capacity.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Graphite One?

At the same time, shareholders have greenlit a reverse stock split of up to 10‑for‑1. The consolidation is intended to lift the share price above the minimum listing requirements of major U.S. exchanges such as the NYSE or Nasdaq, should the board decide to pursue a secondary listing in the United States. The split will only be triggered if a U.S. listing moves forward, a step that would also make the stock more accessible to institutional investors.

The stock’s recent technical indicators underscore the speculative nature of the pre‑production mining and processing sector. The 14‑day relative strength index stands at 44, signalling neutral territory with no signs of oversold or overbought conditions. The annualised 30‑day volatility of 49.25% reflects the high uncertainty surrounding the company’s future cash flows.

On a week‑over‑week basis, shares have inched up 2.42%, a modest bounce that does little to offset the year‑to‑date decline of 45.87%. Investors now have two key dates circled on their calendars: the Alaska permitting decision in late September 2026 and the start of Ohio commercial production targeted for the final quarter of 2027. Until those milestones are met, Graphite One remains a high‑risk bet on the Pentagon’s push to secure Western sources of critical battery materials.