The US Treasury Department has announced that it is giving automakers another two years before the cost of graphite (used within battery anodes) is counted towards the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) domestic sourcing and foreign entity of concern (FEOC) requirements. The official decision comes amidst the Ministry of Finance’s view that graphite products classify as a material which cannot be effectively traced. This is quite frankly a lie, as while it may be difficult to trace with exact precision, the actual reason is that without this moratorium, producers would be completely unable to comply with the IRA’s FEOC requirements due to China being the only source of battery-grade natural graphite products. The true rationale for delaying graphite’s contribution to IRA…