Madagascar Lifts 16-Year Mining Permit Suspension: Major Step Forward for LION’s Ambato-Arana Graphite Project.
Vancouver, British Columbia, Feb. 12, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Global Li-Ion Graphite Corp. (“Global Li-Ion” or, the “Company”) (CSE: LION, OTCQB: GBBGF, F: 0TD) would like to take this opportunity to further update its shareholders and interested parties. The Company welcomes the announcement by Carl Andriamparany, Minister of Mines and Strategic Resources of Madagascar, stating that Madagascar has lifted its 16-year suspension on the issuance of mining permits (except for gold mining permits).
According to local media, the new system for granting permits is based on several mechanisms combining: authorizations for licenses intended for small-scale operators, competitive tenders for industrial projects and the involvement of the Mining Brigade (regulatory/policing unit overseeing mining operations and enforcing laws in the sector) in reviewing applications.
Madagascar has significant mineral resources, notably nickel, cobalt and graphite, which are considered strategic minerals in the context of the global energy transition. According to the latest report published at the end of 2025 under the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, 1,650 mining permits were pending approval in 2023.
Chairman Jason Walsh commented “This is a major step forward for the mining industry in Madagascar as it allows foreign capital to invest with confidence in mining projects like Global Li-Ion’s Ambato-Arana Graphite mine.’
About Ambato-Arana Graphite Mine, Madagascar
The 3 forty-year renewable mining exploitation licenses that comprise the Project total 4,375 hectares (10,811 acres) are located in the vicinity of Andasibe in Toamasina Province in Madagascar, 20 km to the southwest of Sheritt’s large-scale nickel/cobalt laterite open pit mine at Ambatovy and 15 km northeast of the town of Moramanga from which national highway RN2 connects with capital city Antananarivo (114 km) and Madagascar’s main port of Toamasina (Tamatave) (240 km). Graphite was produced on the licenses, at a modest rate constrained by the technology employed on the licenses at that time, for roughly a century from 1910. Production was suspended by the previous owners due to a slump at the time in Global Graphite markets and with the deposits only partially mined. The deposits are now ready for larger scale exploitation with modern production techniques. They lie within the graphitic horizons of the highly prospective Manampotsy Formation and are associated with topographic highs that are exploited via free digging of lateritic ore and open pit mining, providing a lower cost exploitation without need for blasting. The graphite mineralization on the Project appears within well-defined north-south belts with interbedded graphite-rich friable layers. The geological layers of interest have continuity of several kilometres and exhibit a shallow dip angle. Sample data indicate good grade (up to 10% carbon content with some samples up to nearly 14%) and large flake (jumbo size) consistent with other nearby mines e.g. Gallois (Elate Graphite), Sahamamy & Vatomina (Tirupati Graphite) and DNI Metals’ Vohitsara (DNI Metals).
Further information about Global Li-Ion is available under its profile on the SEDAR website, www.sedar.com, on the CSE website, www.thecse.com, and the Company’s website, www.globalli-iongraphite.com.
For Further information about the Company, please contact:
Jason Walsh
Global Li-Ion Graphite Corp.
Telephone 604.608.6314
Email: info@liongraphite.com
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Forward-Looking Information:
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