Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. expects to formally green-light plans this week to build one of North America’s few graphite projects, as countries seek to weaken China’s dominance over the critical mineral.

A previously announced financing package of about $645 million in gross proceeds was backed by shareholders Wednesday. The money is to be used to develop a graphite mine in Saint-Michel-des-Saints, Quebec, about 100 miles north of Montreal, and to build a concentrator nearby.