Mr. Gary Economo reports

GRAFOID INC. - A COMPLETE SOLUTIONS GRAPHENE COMPANY - OFFICIALLY OPENS ITS KINGSTON, ONTARIO MESOGRAF PRODUCTION FACILITIES; CREATING 160 TECHNOLOGY JOBS GENERATING $32 MILLION IN LOCAL ECONOMIC BENEFITS

Focus Graphite Inc. investee Grafoid Inc. officially opened its Kingston, Ont., production facilities today in a ceremony attended by civic, provincial and federal representatives.

In tandem with the official opening, Grafoid marked the occasion with the release of its revised and updated website, featuring video content related to the company's global positioning of its MesoGraf graphene advances.

The one-of-a-kind, 225,000-square-foot Innovation Park technology centre was officially opened as the new home to Grafoid's pipeline MesoGraf research and development laboratories, production facilities, graphene material testing, and engineering and product development.

Grafoid's strategic partner, Graphite Zero Pte. Ltd., has been in full production of MesoGraf and MesoGraf derivatives since early 2014.

Gary Economo, Grafoid's chief executive officer and founding partner, told a news conference the company "expects to create some 160 high-value technical positions at the Innovation Park complex during the next 12 to 24 months, and we expect that number to grow as we expand in subsequent years."

Mr. Economo said: "The technologies we develop here in Kingston with our institutional and corporate partners could lead to graphene's broad commercialization.

"This year, we have embarked on another round of funding to meet our ambitious development objectives and acquisition plans. We have plans to raise $50-million (U.S.) and will be announcing further details on our progress in the coming months.

"This level of funding enables growth and supports our immediate goals of creating some 160-plus professional jobs in this facility -- some of whom are already here today," Mr. Economo said.

"By comparative analysis, we estimate this level of job creation has the potential to generate a financial stimulus to the Kingston community of some $32-million annually, with the potential for even greater growth, as we invest in further growth," he added.

Graphene is the revolutionary miracle material that science believes will forever change the world.

The company is currently moving to expand its global platform through the establishment of subsidiary companies to advance the commercialization of its MesoGraf-based applications.