Qu ipping and Drilling Permits Land at Graphano's Black Jack

Graphano Energy Ltd. (OTC: GELEF) said it received two exploration work permits from Qu\u00e9bec's Minist\u00e8re des Ressources naturelles et des For\u00eats \u2014 ATI-862 for mechanical stripping over 1.1 hectares and ATI-863 for diamond drilling over 2.15 hectares \u2014 clearing the way for stripping, mapping and channel sampling at its Black Jack graphite discovery, followed by exploration drilling.

Graphano Energy Ltd. (OTC: GELEF) has cleared the regulatory step that separates a graphite showing from a drill target. The company said it received two exploration work permits \u2014 autorisations de travaux \u00e0 impact \u2014 from Qu\u00e9bec's Minist\u00e8re des Ressources naturelles et des For\u00eats, covering mechanical stripping and diamond drilling at its Black Jack graphite discovery. Graphano also trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under GEL and in Frankfurt under 97G0.

What each permit actually allows

The two authorisations are narrow, specific and staggered, which is typical of Qu\u00e9bec's impact-work permitting regime. ATI-862 covers 1.1 hectares and permits d\u00e9capage de roc \u2014 mechanical stripping, the removal of overburden such as soil, moss and glacial till to expose bedrock so geologists can map and sample the rock directly. That permit runs from September 15, 2026 through October 31, 2027.

ATI-863 covers a larger footprint, 2.15 hectares, and authorises forage au diamant, or diamond drilling \u2014 the core-recovery method that produces a continuous cylinder of rock for assay and lets a company see what the mineralisation does below surface. That window opens a month later, on October 15, 2026, and runs to November 30, 2027.

The one-month offset matters operationally. Stripping comes first because it defines where the drill holes should go. Graphano said the permits let it proceed with the stripping, mapping and systematic channel sampling programme it had already flagged as the next phase of work at Black Jack. Channel sampling means cutting a continuous groove across exposed rock and assaying the material along it, which gives a far more representative grade picture than grab samples taken from scattered outcrop.

Black Jack sits a kilometre from Black Pearl

Black Jack lies roughly one kilometre northwest of Graphano's Black Pearl graphite discovery in Qu\u00e9bec. That proximity is the strategic point. A second discovery within walking distance of the first raises the question of whether the two are separate occurrences or expressions of the same mineralised trend \u2014 a question stripping and channel sampling are well suited to start answering, and drilling is designed to settle.

For a junior explorer, clustered targets also change the economics of fieldwork. Crews, camps, access roads and drill mobilisation can be shared across two areas rather than duplicated, which stretches a limited treasury further per metre drilled. The company said in its update, carried by INN Battery Metals, that exploration drilling at Black Jack under ATI-863 is intended to follow completion of the prospecting programme.

A long permit runway removes one seasonal risk

Both authorisations extend well into late 2027. In Qu\u00e9bec, that duration is worth more than it looks on paper. Exploration in the province is shaped hard by weather \u2014 frozen ground, snow cover, spring break-up when thawing makes access roads impassable for heavy equipment. A permit valid for barely one season forces a company to compress work into a narrow window or reapply.

Here, ATI-862 spans two autumn seasons and ATI-863 stretches past the second. If the first stripping campaign is delayed by weather, contractor availability or financing timing, Graphano has room to slip the schedule without returning to the ministry. That flexibility is a genuine, if unglamorous, de-risking of the programme.

The corollary is that permits authorise work; they do not fund it. Junior explorers live and die on their ability to raise money against results, and the sequence \u2014 strip, map, channel sample, then drill \u2014 is built so that each step generates data that can support the financing for the next. Investors watching this name will be looking for channel sample assays out of the stripping programme before drill results become a realistic expectation.

How the shares have traded

Graphano's US over-the-counter line, GELEF, last closed at 0.09 (currency as quoted), up 18.73% on the day from a previous close of 0.08, with the day's range shown at 0.09 to 0.09, as of the last trade recorded on Wed, 26 Aug 2026. The market is closed; that is the most recent print, not a live quote.

Two things are worth noting about a figure like that. First, a double-digit percentage move on a sub-dime OTC listing is arithmetically easy \u2014 a single tick can produce it, and a day range that opens and closes at the same level suggests thin trading rather than a broad repricing. Second, at this price point the shares carry the risk profile of a pre-resource explorer: value is contingent on drill results that have not yet been produced, and the equity is a call option on geology.

Graphite's place in the battery basket

Graphite is the standard anode material in lithium-ion cells \u2014 the negative electrode, where lithium ions sit while a battery is charged. By weight it is typically the single largest mineral input in a cell, more than lithium itself, yet it attracts a fraction of the attention. Natural flake graphite must be processed into spherical, purified material before it can be used in an anode, and that midstream step has historically been concentrated in a small number of jurisdictions.

That concentration is precisely why North American flake graphite projects have drawn strategic interest from automakers, cell makers and governments looking to build supply chains outside a single point of failure. Qu\u00e9bec, with hydroelectric power, established mining law and proximity to the North American auto corridor, has been one of the more active addresses for that hunt.

None of which changes the near-term test for Graphano, which is narrower and more concrete: does stripping at Black Jack expose graphite mineralisation of the width and grade that justifies a drill programme, and does that mineralisation connect to Black Pearl a kilometre away? The permits give the company until late 2027 to find out.

What to watch next

• Mobilisation of the stripping crew after ATI-862 opens on September 15, 2026, and confirmation that the 1.1-hectare area has been cleared to bedrock.
• Channel sample assay results from the exposed rock \u2014 the first hard grade data from Black Jack under a systematic sampling protocol.
• Any geological statement on whether Black Jack and Black Pearl sit on a shared trend.
• Financing activity ahead of drilling, since ATI-863 permits holes but does not pay for them.
• Trading liquidity in GELEF and GEL, which will determine how much the market can actually respond to results.

Key facts

• Ticker and last close: GELEF closed at 0.09, +18.73% on the day, as of Wed, 26 Aug 2026
• ATI-862 (stripping): 1.1 hectares, valid Sept 15, 2026 to Oct 31, 2027
• ATI-863 (diamond drilling): 2.15 hectares, valid Oct 15, 2026 to Nov 30, 2027
• Location: Black Jack, about 1 km northwest of Graphano's Black Pearl discovery, Qu\u00e9bec

Frequently asked questions

What did Graphano Energy receive?

Graphano Energy received two exploration work permits, known in Qu\u00e9bec as autorisations de travaux \u00e0 impact, from the province's Minist\u00e8re des Ressources naturelles et des For\u00eats. ATI-862 authorises mechanical stripping of rock over 1.1 hectares, and ATI-863 authorises diamond drilling over 2.15 hectares. Both apply to the company's Black Jack graphite discovery in Qu\u00e9bec.

When can work begin at Black Jack?

Mechanical stripping under ATI-862 is authorised from September 15, 2026 and the permit remains valid until October 31, 2027. Diamond drilling under ATI-863 is authorised from October 15, 2026 through November 30, 2027. The staggered start dates reflect the intended sequence: strip and sample the exposed bedrock first, then drill the targets that work identifies.

What is mechanical stripping and channel sampling?

Mechanical stripping removes overburden \u2014 soil, vegetation and glacial deposits \u2014 to expose the underlying bedrock so geologists can map and sample it directly. Channel sampling then cuts a continuous groove across that exposed rock and assays material along its length, producing a more representative grade measurement than isolated grab samples taken from scattered surface outcrop.

Where is Black Jack relative to Black Pearl?

Black Jack sits approximately one kilometre northwest of Graphano's Black Pearl graphite discovery in Qu\u00e9bec. The short distance raises the question of whether the two showings represent separate occurrences or a single mineralised trend, and it allows the company to share crews, access and equipment mobilisation across both areas during a field campaign.

How has the stock traded?

Graphano's US over-the-counter listing, GELEF, last closed at 0.09, a gain of 18.73% from the previous close of 0.08, with a day range of 0.09 to 0.09, as of Wed, 26 Aug 2026. The market is closed and that is the most recent recorded trade. Graphano also lists on the TSX Venture Exchange as GEL and in Frankfurt as 97G0.

Why does graphite matter in batteries?

Graphite is the standard anode material in lithium-ion cells, the negative electrode where lithium ions reside during charging. By weight it is usually the largest single mineral input in a cell. Natural flake graphite must be shaped into spherical form and purified before use, a midstream processing step historically concentrated in relatively few jurisdictions.

Sources

• Graphano Energy Receives Exploration Permits for Black Jack Graphite Discovery and Provides Corporate Update — INN Battery Metals

Photo: Kamakshi · Pexels Licence — source