REG - Neometals Ltd - Mercedes-Benz Refinery Purchase Order

NeometalsAnnouncement

10/01/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 2257Z  Neometals Ltd  10 January 2024

This announcement contains inside information

 

10 January 2024

 

Neometals Ltd

("Neometals" or "the Company")

 

Mercedes-Benz Refinery Purchase Order

 

Highlights

·  Primobius receives purchase order ("PO") from Mercedes-Benz ("Mercedes")
for the hydrometallurgical refinery ("Hub") plant to complete its lithium-ion
battery ("LiB") recycling facility, currently under construction, in
Kuppenheim, Germany; and

·    PO covers fabrication, installation and commissioning of the Hub
which will refine intermediate products from the 2,500tpa shredding 'Spoke'
currently being fabricated for Mercedes under a previous PO.

 

Innovative battery materials recycler, Neometals Ltd (ASX: NMT & AIM: NMT)
("Neometals" or "the Company"), is pleased to announce that Primobius GmbH
("Primobius") has received a PO for supply of a hydrometallurgical refining
Hub from Mercedes for installation at its Kuppenheim operation in Germany.
Primobius is an incorporated battery recycling joint venture ("JV"), company
owned 50:50 by Neometals and SMS group GmbH ("SMS"). Primobius is
commercialising a patented LiB recycling process via a plant supply and
technology licensing business model.

 

The PO value is ~ €18.8M (~ A$30.8M) and was awarded as part of a
cooperation arrangement with Mercedes ("Cooperation"). Under the Cooperation,
Primobius is responsible for the engineering, equipment supply and
installation for a 2,500tpa fully-integrated, closed loop Mercedes LiB
Recycling Pilot Plant ("Mercedes Spoke" followed by "Mercedes Hub") (together
"Mercedes Pilot Plant"). 1  The Hub is designed to match the capacity required
to process intermediate feed material ("Black Mass") generated from the
front-end refining Spoke.

 

The Mercedes Pilot Plant marks the automotive company's entry into the field
of LiB recycling. As set out in the Mercedes 'Kuppenheim Ground-Breaking
Ceremony' Press Release dated 3(rd) March 2023, the Mercedes LiB Recycling
Plant at Kuppenheim "aims to cut resource consumption and establish
closed-loop recycling of battery raw materials as (Mercedes) moves towards
going electric only". The facility aims to recover materials (including
lithium, nickel and cobalt, amongst others) which will be fed back into
production of a targeted 50,000 battery modules for installation into new
Mercedes vehicles.

 

The Mercedes Hub PO completes the Primobius contractual arrangements relating
to construction of the Mercedes Pilot Plant and follows, as scheduled, closely
behind the corresponding Spoke PO 2 . The award is further validation of the
efficacy and scalability of the Primobius technology to meet the needs of
global OEM's generally, and the automotive industry more specifically.
Successful commissioning and the achievement of steady state operations will
significantly de-risk the next level of scale up to 21,000tpa. Beyond the
Mercedes Pilot Plant, Primobius is focused on engineering an industrial scale
solution for Mercedes.

 

 

Figure 1: Render of integrated Mercedes LiB Recycling Pilot in Kuppenheim
Germany.

Figure 2: Real-time photo of construction progress.

 

 

Neometals Managing Director, Chris Reed says:

 

"We are proud to partner with Mercedes in its journey to lead the closed-loop
recycling of lithium batteries.

 

The relationship exemplifies some of the unique aspects to Primobius' business
model. One of these is the ability to supply plant and offer technology
licences so OEMs can retain their battery materials from scrap and end-of-life
batteries. Supply certainty, low operating costs and low carbon footprint are
key value drivers for OEM's looking forward. Our measured approach to
delivering scalable solutions with our partner and leading plant builder SMS
augurs well for penetrating this enormous addressable market.

 

Primobius looks forward to working with Mercedes to scaleup the technology and
provide an industrial scale recycling solution to meet their future needs."

 

 

Next Steps

 

Primobius has commenced the installation of the Spoke plant equipment and will
now commence fabrication of the Hub equipment supply package.

 

 

About Primobius GmbH

 

Primobius is a 50:50 incorporated joint venture between Australian sustainable
battery materials producer, Neometals Ltd, and German global plant
manufacturer SMS group. Primobius is focused on the development of sustainable
processes for the recovery and recycling of lithium-ion batteries.

For more information, please visit https://www.primobius.com
(https://www.primobius.com/) .

 

Authorised on behalf of Neometals by Christopher Reed, Managing Director.

 

For more information, please contact:

 

 Neometals Ltd
 Chris Reed, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer         +61 8 9322 1182
 Jeremy McManus, General Manager - IP & IR                       +61 8 9322 1182

 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited - NOMAD & Joint Broker
 Neil McDonald                                                  +44 (0)131 220 9771
 Peter Lynch                                                    +44 (0)131 220 9772
 Adam Rae                                                       +44 (0)131 220 9778

 RBC Capital Markets - Joint Broker                             +44 (0) 20 7653 4000
 Paul Betts
 Jamil Miah

 Camarco PR                                                     + 44(0) 20 3 757 4980
 Gordon Poole
 Emily Hall
 Lily Pettifar

 

About Neometals

Neometals has developed and is commercialising three environmentally-friendly
processing technologies that produce critical and strategic battery materials
at lowest quartile costs with minimal carbon footprint.

Through strong industry partnerships, Neometals is demonstrating the economic
and environmental benefits of sustainably producing lithium, nickel, cobalt
and vanadium from lithium-ion battery recycling and steel waste recovery. This
reduces the reliance on traditional mine-based supply chains and creating more
resilient, circular supply to support the energy transition.

The Company's three core business units are exploiting the technologies under
principal, joint venture and licensing business models:

 

·      Lithium-ion Battery ("LiB") Recycling (50% technology)
- Commercialisation via Primobius GmbH JV (NMT 50% equity). All plants built
by Primobius' co-owner (SMS group 50% equity), a 150-year-old German plant
builder. Providing recycling service as principal in Germany and commenced
plant supply and licensing activities as technology partner to Mercedes-Benz.
Primobius targeting first commercial, fully integrated, 21,000tpa plant offer
to Canadian company Stelco in the JunQ 2025;

 

·      Lithium Chemicals (70% technology) - Commercialising patented
ELi™ electrolysis process, co-owned 30% by Mineral Resources Ltd, to produce
battery quality lithium hydroxide from brine and/or hard-rock feedstocks at
lowest quartile operating costs. Co-funding Pilot Plant trials in 2023 with
planned Demonstration Plant trials and evaluation studies in 2024 for
potential 25,000tpa LiOH operation in Portugal under a JV with related entity
to Bondalti, Portugal's largest chemical company; and

·      Vanadium Recovery (100% technology) - aiming to enable
sustainable production of high-purity vanadium pentoxide from processing of
steelmaking by-product ("Slag") at lowest-quartile operating cost. Targeting
partnerships with steel makers and participants in the vanadium chemical value
chain under a low risk / low capex technology licensing business model.

 

For further information visit www.neometals.com.au
(http://www.neometals.com.au/)

 

 

 1  for full details refer to Neometals ASX announcement headlined
"Cooperation Agreement with Mercedes Benz" released on 13(th) May 2022

 2  for full details refer to Neometals ASX announcement headlined
"Mercedes-Benz Recycling Plant Purchase Order" released on 22(nd) August 2023

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