Lifezone Metals Limited (NYSE: LZM) is a modern metals company that creates value across the battery metals supply chain from resource to metals production and recycling. Lifezone Metals’ Chief Executive Officer Chris Showalter is pleased to announce the signing of a term sheet with a subsidiary of Glencore plc (LSE: GLEN) for a platinum, palladium and rhodium (collectively platinum group metals or “PGMs”) recycling project utilizing Lifezone Metals’ hydrometallurgical technology (“Hydromet”) to be based in the USA.
Phase 1 confirmatory piloting work has commenced in Perth, Australia using Hydromet to process and recover PGMs from responsibly sourced spent automotive catalytic converters.
Mr. Showalter stated: “By applying our Hydromet technology, we aim to responsibly recover platinum, palladium and rhodium from recycled sources in a cleaner and more efficient manner than otherwise possible through traditional smelting and refining. Following our acquisition of Simulus Labs in July, where we acquired the preeminent hydrometallurgical testing and engineering design group, we gained the capability to simultaneously advance our Kabanga Nickel Project through the continuing Definitive Feasibility Study while also investigating other important applications of our core Hydromet technology.”
Mr. Showalter continued: “In Glencore, we have a world class partner with exceptional market reach to help position our USA recycling joint venture favorably with respect to financing and marketing of finished PGMs. We expect our confirmatory pilot program to further validate our Hydromet capabilities and demonstrate that we can also generate favorable economic returns from PGM recycling. Further, the facility we intend to build is highly replicable and scalable, which is important given the very large and rapidly growing addressable market we expect in the years ahead.”
Highlights of the PGM Recycling Joint Venture with Glencore
- Term sheet signed by Lifezone Metals and Glencore for the two-phased implementation of a recycling joint venture to recover PGMs from spent automotive catalytic converters. The joint venture will be domiciled in the USA.
- The goal of the joint venture is to profitably deliver high purity, refined PGMs from 100% recycled sources.
- Lifezone is providing its Hydromet technology for Phase 1 confirmatory piloting and design of the recycling facility. Test work is underway at Lifezone Metals’ laboratories in Perth, Australia and is expected to be complete in the first half of 2024.
- The Phase 1 confirmatory pilot project costs are expected to be $3 million. Initial capital costs for the Phase 2 commercial-scale recycling facility in the USA are expected to be ~$15-20 million for a ~115,000 oz per year PGM recycling facility.
- Glencore will provide a working capital facility for the Phase 2 commercial-scale recycling facility and will be the sole offtaker and marketer of the refined PGMs.
Phased Implementation Plan for the Joint Venture
Phase 1
Lifezone Metals has commenced a confirmatory program of pilot test work at Lifezone Metals’ laboratories in Perth, Australia. The confirmatory program will be jointly funded by Lifezone Metals and Glencore. Based on pilot test results, a feasibility study will be completed to outline the expected PGM recoveries, capital and operating expenditures and expected project economics. A decision to proceed to Phase 2 will depend on the results of Phase 1 confirmatory pilot test work and the outcomes of the feasibility study.
Figure 1: Primary filtration test completed at Lifezone Metals’ laboratories in Perth, Australia (November 2023).
Please refer to Figure 1 in the Press Release on our website here.
Phase 2
Following successful completion of Phase 1, Lifezone Metals and Glencore will jointly fund the initial capital expenditures required to construct a commercial-scale PGM recycling facility.
Through the use of Lifezone Metals’ Hydromet technology, the recycling facility will be one of the first non-smelted PGM recycling operations globally and will demonstrate at commercial-scale a faster, more efficient and less emissions-intensive method of recycling PGMs.
Glencore will provide a working capital facility for the recycling facility and will apply its marketing expertise in respect of 100% of the recycled PGMs.
