Westwater Resources
Westwater Resources is a U.S. mineral-resource company developing graphite and other materials used in clean-energy and advanced manufacturing applications.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Westwater Resources, Inc. is a U.S.-focused mineral exploration and development company whose business has shifted from uranium toward graphite and other minerals associated with the clean-energy supply chain. The company was established in southern Texas in 1977 as a uranium business. Over subsequent decades it acquired, developed, and divested uranium properties in the United States and abroad, while also becoming involved in disputes concerning permitting and mineral rights. A major turning point came in 2012, when Westwater, then operating as Uranium Resources, merged with Neutron Energy. The company changed its name to Westwater Resources in 2017, reflecting an effort to broaden its strategic focus beyond uranium. In 2018 it acquired Alabama Graphite Corp., obtaining control of the Coosa Graphite Project in Alabama and establishing graphite as the center of its corporate strategy. The Coosa project covers approximately 41,900 acres in Coosa County, near Sylacauga, Alabama. Westwater has described the deposit as containing natural flake graphite together with vanadium mineralization. The company’s plan is to mine and concentrate graphite-bearing material, then process the concentrate into purified and coated products suitable for lithium-ion battery anodes. It has worked with Dorfner Anzaplan to develop purification methods intended to produce graphite with a purity of approximately 99.95 percent. The project is positioned as a domestic source of battery materials at a time when the United States has sought to reduce dependence on overseas graphite supply. In 2022, Westwater began construction of the Kellyton Graphite Processing Facility in Coosa County. Equipment deliveries were reported in 2023. The planned facility is intended to transform natural graphite concentrate into battery-grade anode material rather than functioning only as a conventional mine or concentrate producer. Westwater has also pursued commercial relationships with battery manufacturers. In 2023 it entered an agreement with SK On to study and develop anode materials tailored to SK On batteries. In 2024 the companies announced an offtake agreement covering 34,000 tons of natural graphite anode products from the Kellyton facility for SK On’s U.S. battery operations. Uranium remains part of Westwater’s historical identity, but the company has sold or otherwise exited major uranium assets. Its former New Mexico properties, including the Church Rock and Crownpoint projects, were sold to Laramide Resources in 2016. Westwater later transferred uranium assets in New Mexico and Texas to enCore Energy in exchange for shares, royalties, and the assumption of reclamation obligations. The company also pursued international arbitration against Turkey after a dispute over uranium exploration permits. In 2023 an arbitral tribunal awarded Westwater damages, reimbursement of certain costs, and interest, although the company sought correction of the award calculation. Westwater’s current positioning is therefore that of a development-stage domestic critical-minerals company, with graphite processing and battery-anode production as its principal strategic objective. Its investment case is closely linked to the growth of electric vehicles, battery manufacturing, U.S. industrial policy, and demand for locally sourced critical minerals. The business remains exposed to permitting, construction, financing, technology-development, commodity-price, customer-qualification, and execution risks.
History
Westwater Resources began in 1977 in southern Texas as a uranium company. Its early identity was tied to the exploration and development of uranium resources in the United States. The company later expanded its uranium interests to include properties in New Mexico, Texas, and Turkey. The company’s uranium activities intersected with significant environmental and community concerns. One important historical property was the Church Rock project in New Mexico, an area associated with a major 1979 uranium-mill spill that contaminated the Puerco River while the property was under previous ownership. When regulators considered a possible permit for renewed development in 2012, opposition emerged from people concerned about environmental effects and the project’s location in traditional Navajo territory. In 2016, Westwater sold Hydro Resources, the subsidiary holding the Church Rock and Crownpoint properties, to Laramide Resources. In August 2012, Uranium Resources merged with Neutron Energy. The transaction expanded the company’s mineral portfolio and preceded a broader effort to reposition the business. In August 2017, Uranium Resources changed its corporate name to Westwater Resources. The renaming reflected an intention to move beyond a single-commodity uranium model and pursue a wider set of resources associated with energy and industrial demand. The strategic transition accelerated in 2018, when Westwater completed the acquisition of Alabama Graphite Corp. The transaction added the Coosa Graphite Project in Alabama. The project covers about 41,900 acres approximately 25 miles southwest of Sylacauga, at the southern end of the Appalachian Mountains. Westwater’s development concept has involved open-pit-style extraction using heavy equipment, followed by flotation and grinding to produce a graphite concentrate. The company has also pursued downstream purification to reach battery-grade specifications. Westwater engaged Dorfner Anzaplan, a German technical-services firm, to help define the process, equipment, and operating parameters needed to purify natural flake graphite to approximately 99.95 percent. This downstream emphasis has been central to the company’s attempt to distinguish itself from a conventional mineral explorer. The objective is to supply processed graphite and anode materials to the U.S. battery industry, where domestic and allied supply chains have become strategically important. The Coosa resource also contains vanadium mineralization, reportedly associated with the mineral roscoelite. Vanadium is used principally in steel alloys and is classified as a critical mineral by U.S. authorities. Westwater has treated the vanadium occurrence as an additional potential value stream, although graphite has remained the main focus of its commercial development strategy. In 2022, Westwater broke ground on the Kellyton Graphite Processing Facility in Coosa County, Alabama. Equipment deliveries were reported in 2023. The planned facility is intended to process graphite into battery-ready anode products, giving Westwater a downstream role in the electric-vehicle and energy-storage supply chain. The company subsequently entered a technical-development agreement with SK On in 2023 and an offtake agreement in 2024 for 34,000 tons of natural graphite anode products. Westwater’s international uranium activities also produced a major legal and financial dispute. The company had invested in Turkish uranium projects, including Temrezli and Sefaatli, beginning in 2007. Turkish authorities later maintained that permits issued to the company had been granted in error. After unsuccessful attempts to resolve the matter through contact with the Turkish government, Westwater initiated arbitration under the rules of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. In March 2023, the tribunal awarded approximately $1.3 million in damages, reimbursement of roughly $3.7 million in fees and expenses, and interest. Westwater subsequently filed a notice seeking correction of the tribunal’s calculation, which it said could raise the damages component to approximately $2.8 million. Westwater has also divested its remaining U.S. uranium assets. In a transaction with enCore Energy, the company received shares and future-production royalties while enCore assumed approximately $6 million in asset-retirement obligations connected with remaining reclamation work. Westwater later sold its enCore shares. The company’s historical uranium operations therefore now function mainly as part of its corporate and legal background rather than its principal operating strategy. Today, Westwater is best understood as a development-stage U.S. critical-minerals company focused on graphite processing and battery-anode materials. Its future depends on completing and qualifying the Kellyton operation, securing financing and customers, managing permitting and construction, and converting the Coosa resource into commercially competitive products.
- 2024
First SK On graphite offtake agreement
[1]Westwater announced an agreement to supply 34,000 tons of natural graphite anode products processed at Kellyton for SK On’s U.S. facilities.
- 2023
ICSID arbitration award
[1]An arbitral tribunal awarded Westwater damages, expenses, and interest in its dispute with Turkey over uranium exploration permits.
- 2023
SK On development agreement
[1]Westwater and SK On agreed to study and develop graphite anode materials for SK On battery applications.
- 2022
Kellyton facility groundbreaking
[1]Westwater broke ground on the Kellyton Graphite Processing Facility in Coosa County, Alabama.
- 2018
Alabama Graphite acquisition
[1]Westwater acquired Alabama Graphite Corp., including the Coosa Graphite Project in Alabama.
- 2017
Corporate name changed to Westwater Resources
[1]The company changed its name from Uranium Resources to Westwater Resources and had previously traded under the URRE ticker.
- 2016
Sale of Hydro Resources
[1]Westwater sold Hydro Resources, which held the Church Rock and Crownpoint uranium properties in New Mexico, to Laramide Resources.
- 2012
Neutron Energy merger
[1]Uranium Resources merged with Neutron Energy, expanding its mineral-resource portfolio.
- 2003
Proposal involving traditional Navajo territory
[1]The company proposed uranium mining activity in an area identified as traditional Navajo territory, contributing to later community and environmental opposition.
- 1977
Company founded as a uranium business
[1]Westwater was established in southern Texas with a business focused exclusively on uranium.
Products and positioning
A U.S.-based critical-minerals developer focused on vertically integrated graphite production and battery-anode materials, with historical activities in uranium and additional vanadium potential.
Graphite mining and resource development · 2018
Coosa Graphite Project
The Coosa Graphite Project is Westwater’s principal mineral asset in Alabama. It covers approximately 41,900 acres near Sylacauga and contains natural flake graphite together with vanadium mineralization. Westwater’s development concept involves extracting graphite-bearing material, concentrating it through flotation and grinding, and supplying feedstock to downstream purification and anode-material operations.
Battery-material processing · 2022
Kellyton Graphite Processing Facility
The Kellyton facility in Coosa County, Alabama, is designed to process natural graphite into purified and potentially coated products for lithium-ion battery anodes. Construction began in 2022, with equipment deliveries reported in 2023. The facility represents Westwater’s effort to participate in the higher-value processing segment rather than sell only unprocessed mineral concentrate.
Battery materials
Battery-grade graphite anode materials
Westwater is developing purified graphite and related anode products intended for lithium-ion batteries. The company has described a target purification level of approximately 99.95 percent and has worked with Dorfner Anzaplan on process design. Commercial development has included technical collaboration and an offtake arrangement with SK On.
Critical-mineral resource
Vanadium resources
Vanadium occurs at the Coosa Graphite Project in close association with graphite, reportedly in the form of roscoelite. Vanadium is principally used as an alloying element in steel and has been designated a critical mineral by U.S. authorities. It represents a potential additional resource opportunity, although Westwater’s main development emphasis is graphite.
Controversies
2012
Opposition to potential Church Rock uranium permitting
Potential permitting activity associated with the Church Rock uranium project drew opposition because of the site’s connection to the 1979 uranium spill in the Puerco River and its location in an area of traditional Navajo significance. An online petition opposing renewed permitting reportedly attracted more than 15,000 supporters.
Brand decisions
2024
Graphite offtake agreement with SK OnOtherBackground
The agreement followed technical cooperation between the companies and was intended to support SK On’s U.S. battery-manufacturing supply chain.
Action taken
Westwater agreed to supply 34,000 tons of natural graphite anode products processed at the Kellyton plant.
Aftermath
The agreement provided a commercial demand framework for Westwater’s planned downstream graphite production.
2023
Strategic anode-material development agreement with SK OnOtherBackground
Westwater sought an anchor battery-industry relationship and technical validation for graphite materials intended for electric-vehicle batteries.
Action taken
Westwater and SK On agreed to study and develop environmentally oriented, high-performance anode materials over a three-year period.
Aftermath
The relationship preceded a 2024 offtake agreement for graphite anode products.
2023
Challenge to the Turkish arbitration calculationOtherBackground
After receiving an ICSID award in its dispute with Turkey over uranium exploration permits, Westwater identified what it described as an error in the tribunal’s damages calculation.
Action taken
Westwater filed a notice of rectification seeking to increase the damages component from approximately $1.3 million to approximately $2.8 million.
Aftermath
Turkey filed a rejoinder in June 2023; the supplied material does not establish the final result of the rectification request.
Requested damages correction. Approximately $1.3 million → Approximately $2.8 million requested (2023)
2022
Construction of the Kellyton Graphite Processing FacilityProduct launchBackground
Westwater aimed to build a U.S.-based downstream graphite-processing operation linked to the Coosa resource.
Action taken
The company broke ground on the Kellyton facility in Alabama.
Aftermath
Equipment deliveries were reported in 2023, while the project remained dependent on development, financing, permitting, and customer-qualification progress.
2018
Acquisition of Alabama GraphiteM&ABackground
Westwater wanted to establish a business in graphite, a material expected to benefit from growth in electric vehicles and battery manufacturing.
Action taken
The company acquired Alabama Graphite Corp. and obtained the Coosa Graphite Project.
Aftermath
The transaction shifted Westwater’s operating narrative from uranium exploration toward domestic graphite mining, processing, and battery-anode materials.
2017
Rebrand from Uranium Resources to Westwater ResourcesStrategyBackground
The company sought to broaden its identity beyond uranium and pursue a wider portfolio of energy-related and industrial minerals.
Action taken
It changed its corporate name to Westwater Resources and moved toward a diversified critical-minerals strategy.
Aftermath
Graphite became the company’s principal strategic focus after the acquisition of Alabama Graphite in 2018.
Recent events
Westwater announces NYSE American listing[2]
Reported:
Westwater Resources announced that its common stock would begin trading on the NYSE American on March 19, 2021, with its ticker symbol remaining WWR.
Westwater announces sale of North American uranium assets[3]
Reported:
Westwater Resources announced the sale of all its uranium assets in New Mexico and Texas to enCore Energy for $1.8 million in enCore shares and royalties from future production. enCore assumed the asset retirement obligation associated with the assets.
Sources3 sources
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