Envirostream Australia, a 24% subsidiary of Lithium Australia (ASX: LIT), announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with South Korean company SungEel HiTech Co. for the sale of recycled battery metals.
In a media statement, the companies involved in the deal explained that Envirostraem will supply SungEel with mixed metal dust or MMD containing cobalt, nickel
At present, Envirostream is the only company in Australia certified to collect, sort, shred and separate all the components of spent LIBs
The plan is for SungEel to use the minerals to supply environmentally sustainable technology projects that benefit from a circular battery economy.
According to Adrian Griffin, Lithium Australia’s managing director, Envirostream’s next MMD shipment to SungEel should take place later this month.
In the executive’s view, expanding Envirostream’s processing capacity to keep spent LIBs from landfill and export the energy metals they contain is imperative for Australia.
“Closing the loop on the production of battery materials reduces the environmental footprint of the mining and processing aspects inherent in LIB production, improves sustainability and prevents the components of spent LIBs from leaking into groundwater and oceans as a consequence of their relegation to landfill or transport to other jurisdictions,” Griffin said.