Highlights
SYDNEY, Oct. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- First Graphene Limited (ASX: FGR; "First Graphene" or "the Company") (FRA:M11) (OTCQB:FGPHF) has entered a three-year Development and Commercialisation Agreement with Turkish prepreg manufacturer, Aeropreg, to advance a PureGRAPH® enhanced carbon fibre prepreg towards commercialisation.
Under the three-year agreement, First Graphene's proprietary epoxy concentrates will be used to optimise the incorporation of PureGRAPH® into Aeropreg's existing carbon fibre prepreg manufacturing process.
Carbon fibre prepreg is a composite material that has been pre-infused with partially cured polymer resin and is often used to strengthen components used in aerospace, defence, automotives and sporting goods.
The development program will focus on achieving controlled and repeatable graphene loading within prepreg before validating the strength, durability, performance and manufacturability of the resulting material.
Subject to trial results, First Graphene and Aeropreg will advance the material towards commercial launch, leveraging Aeropreg's existing sales channels across the aerospace, automotive, marine and sporting goods industries.
The new partnership represents the next stage in First Graphene's strategy to convert its technical development in carbon fibre composites into commercial opportunities for PureGRAPH®.
It also follows First Graphene's track record of positive results from customer development programs and grant-funded research on graphene-enhanced carbon fibre composites.
Securing a commercial prepreg solution and an experienced manufacturing partner is an essential step towards addressing defence, aerospace and automotive applications. Modern commercial aircraft make extensive use of carbon fibre prepreg in their airframes, for primary structures.
The collaboration aligns with First Graphene's increased focus on the US market and its recent acquisition of MITO Materials, which expanded the Company's composites technology and customer relationships in North America.
Importantly, Aeropreg has in-house resin development and testing capabilities, providing First Graphene with a manufacturing partner to advance this technology towards commercial production.
This agreement provides First Graphene with a potential pathway into the global carbon fibre reinforced plastics market, which is estimated to grow to the value of US$43.7 billion by 2033[1].
About Aeropreg
Aeropreg manufactures and supplies prepreg composite materials, including carbon, glass, aramid and basalt fibre prepregs, for aerospace, automotive, marine, sporting goods, medical and wind energy applications. The company offers customised material solutions and technical support to meet customers' specific requirements.
Aeropreg's research and development capabilities include developing and refining resin systems, supported by in-house chemical, physical, thermal and mechanical testing.
Aeropreg is a subsidiary of Spinteks. According to Aeropreg, its prepreg production operates under AS9100 aerospace quality management certification. In June 2026, Spinteks was added to the Turkish Aerospace (TUSAŞ) Approved Supplier List for composite manufacturing, with Aeropreg carrying out prepreg production within the group.[2]
First Graphene Managing Director and CEO, Michael Bell, said:
"The new partnership with Aeropreg represents an important step in progressing our carbon fibre development work towards commercialisation in key industries such as aerospace and defence.
We have built considerable knowledge around incorporating PureGRAPH® into composite materials and the next step was to combine that expertise with an established manufacturer capable of producing and taking a product to market.
Aeropreg brings extensive prepreg manufacturing and resin development capabilities, as well as established global sales channels across a number of high-value industries.
Our immediate focus will be on successfully validating the material within Aeropreg's manufacturing process, with the longer-term objective of establishing another commercial route to market for PureGRAPH®."
-Ends-
This announcement has been approved by the Chairman.
References
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