Tesla and Australian graphite producer Syrah Resources have agreed to extend the cure period on their multi-year graphite supply agreement yet again, marking the second deadline push in just two months, according to a report from Reuters.
Tesla issued a default notice in July after Syrah allegedly failed to deliver satisfactory active anode material samples from its Vidalia, Louisiana, processing facility — material intended for use in the automaker’s U.S.-built electric vehicles.
The original September 16 deadline was later moved to November 15, and both companies have now agreed to extend the date to January 16, 2026. In its statement, Syrah said: “While Syrah does not accept it is in default under the offtake agreement, the parties have extended the cure date to 16 January 2026.”
Tesla and Syrah first signed the deal in late 2021, securing 8,000 metric tons of U.S.-processed graphite anode material for the automaker over four years. The Vidalia facility is notable for being the only vertically integrated, large-scale active anode material producer outside China, making it an increasingly important asset as automakers race to localize EV supply chains.
Today’s extension also lands at a time when Tesla is pushing suppliers to eliminate China-made components from all U.S.-built vehicles within the next one to two years. That effort, reported last week, aligns with both U.S. policy incentives and Tesla’s long-term plans to de-risk its supply ecosystem from geopolitical and regulatory uncertainties.
Syrah noted that Tesla may terminate the offtake agreement entirely if the plant’s active anode material hasn’t achieved final qualification by February 9, 2026. Meanwhile, the miner also announced that one of its subsidiaries secured an additional $8.5 million drawdown from a U.S. International Development Finance Corporation loan to support its Balama graphite operations in Mozambique.
Tesla has a similar supply agreement in place with Magnis Energy, another Australian mineral developer, which went into effect earlier this year — part of a broader strategy to shore up secure, non-Chinese sources of battery-grade graphite as global EV competition intensifies.
