Electra Battery Materials Corporation (TSX-V:ELBM, OTCQX:ELBMF) announced that it has signed a battery recycling and cobalt sulfate supply agreement with Japanese conglomerate Marubeni Corporation.
Under the agreement, Electra said the two companies are committing to providing electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers and battery cell makers with high-quality, low carbon and traceable battery materials.
Electra said it will benefit from Marubeni's expansive network of battery cell recyclers worldwide to secure a stable source of black mass and other recyclable materials for the company's recycling operation, which is slated for commissioning in 2023. It will also leverage Marubeni's strong presence in Japan and Asia as a preferred facilitator of battery raw material flows into the regional EV supply chain.
READ: Electra Battery Materials signs five-year cobalt tolling contract and amends five-year feed purchase agreement with Glencore
"Marketing a portion of our cobalt production in Japan will lay the groundwork for further expansion opportunities as the North American market develops," Electra CEO Trent Mell said in a statement.
"This partnership with Marubeni reflects the strong demand for North American battery materials as an alternative to legacy supply chains.”
Electra noted that it remains on track to commission its near-zero carbon cobalt refinery in late 2022, positioning the company as the only producer of battery-grade cobalt in North America. The cobalt facility is the first of a four-phased project that will result in North America's only integrated battery materials park, refining cobalt, nickel and black mass and converting the material into cathode precursor material for lithium-ion batteries.
"The Japanese lithium-ion battery industry is very well established and will continue to grow,” Electra VP Commercial Michael Insulan added.
“Marubeni's wide network of industry contacts in the battery cell and materials space, as well as in the recycling community, will help Electra to diversify its black mass sourcing options for our lithium-ion battery recycling operations.”
Electra also announced that it has issued 639,959 deferred shares units, 205,000 restricted share units, 325,000 performance share units and 4,000,935 stock options to directors, officers, employees and contractors of the company under its 2021 long-term incentive plan
“Long-term incentive grants are an important retention and incentive tool for key employees, and a mechanism to align interests with shareholders,” the company said.
Electra Battery Materials, formerly called First Cobalt Corp, is building North America's only fully integrated, localized and environmentally sustainable battery materials park.
Leveraging the company's own mining assets and business partners, the Electra Battery Materials Park will host cobalt and nickel sulfate production plants, a large-scale lithium-ion battery recycling facility, and battery precursor materials production, which will serve both North American and global customers.
Electra also owns the advanced exploration-stage Iron Creek cobalt-copper project in Idaho, USA.
Contact the author at stephen.gunnion@proactiveinvestors.com