Primobius to potentially enter the North American recycling market – sings MoU with Stelco Holding

The German recycler Primobius has signed an MoU on setting a 20,000 tpa recycling plant in Ontario, Canada.

Primobius, a joint venture in itself between Australian Neometals and German equipment manufacturer SMS Group, would own 50% of the new entity (and Stelco the other 50%). The company is yet to commission their first recycling plant which will be based on technology developed by Neometals, initially at a pilot plant not far from Stelco, in Quebec.

Stelco is a steel manufacturer that provides specialty steel to the automotive industry. Their role in the JV would be to source and recycle end-of-life vehicles, something the company is not doing today as far as we are aware of.

By entering into the MoU, Primobius and Stelco "intend to share information, conduct due diligence, collaborate and build a business case for a long-term commercial relationship between the parties".

20,000 tonnes of waste batteries is a signficant volume, representing almost 25% of the entire North American market in 2030 or 7-8% if battery production waste is accounted for.

The companies did not communicate any timelines.

More about the deal here.