PyroGenesis Canada Inc. (TSX:PYR, NASDAQ:PYR) has provided an update on the encouraging progress achieved in its joint venture (JV) and license agreement with a leading residue processor.
The company said the JV partner has completed primary testing of residues from an operational DROSRITE facility and the results confirm that the residues are of such high quality that they can be processed into highly marketable products.
"We are extremely happy to announce today that for the very first time the existing process, around which we are basing the joint venture on, has successfully tested residues from PyroGenesis' DROSRITE metal recovery system," P. Peter Pascali, CEO of PyroGenesis Canada said in a statement.
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"Of note, these residues are from the same site where we plan to build and operate our first dross residue processing plant. It is expected that this will be the first plant of several that will be built to transform dross residues into high value chemicals. Timing could not be more perfect, as these residues are being increasingly regulated, with some jurisdictions banning them outright from landfills.”
“The success of these test results further validates the ‘inside-the-fence’, on-site discovery and upsell strategy we have often described as key to our customer relationships. This bodes well for our long-term goal of building out and operating many such plants. These results further demonstrate the value of this JV and reinforces PyroGenesis' strategy as an eventual one-stop shop for aluminum producers aiming to reduce CO2 emissions with environmentally-friendly processes," added Pascali.
Aluminum dross is a waste by-product of aluminum production or transformation, created when the top layer of the molten metal is exposed to oxygen. Composed of a mix of aluminum metal as well as oxides and other chemicals that get trapped together in this layer, it is constantly skimmed off and removed from furnaces containing molten metal. Toxic in nature, dross is stored, landfilled, or processed, with the goal to recover some of the metal that it contains.
Transforming waste
The company’s DROSRITE dross processing metal recovery system can recover up to an industry-leading 98% of the aluminum metal fraction in dross, returning it directly back to production, resulting in cost savings for aluminum producers, who benefit from higher output levels and lower waste and cost to store or landfill the material.
The material left after DROSRITE processing is most often either disposed in landfills or sometimes sold as-is as a cheap production additive to other industries. The 50:50 JV agreement was signed to transform these residues into high-value products to sell on the open market.
The company said the results reveal that the residues are of extremely high quality, for both alumina and aluminum nitrides. This reflects both the quality of the aluminum produced by the company's client (a major producer of aluminum), and of PyroGenesis' DROSRITE process which, unlike legacy processing technology used by some in the industry, contains no salt or other contaminants as part of the process.
With the results of the testing in hand, steps to confirm specific techno-economic aspects of the first JV plant can be completed—a phase that's ongoing this quarter and which is expected to conclude during the next quarter—allowing for actual factory planning to start.
"These preliminary results, while not surprising, underscore the benefit of utilizing PyroGenesis' DROSRITE system for aluminum dross processing, as well as the company's commitment to finding unique, in-line technology solutions for heavy industry, particularly the aluminum, steel, and mining industries," said the PyroGenesis Canada CEO.
"As we have stated previously, we believe that this announcement is a game-changer for the aluminum industry as it allows PyroGenesis to offer a truly complete dross processing service, delivering zero-landfill/reduced carbon solutions while at the same time increasing clients' profitability,” he added.
Contact the author at jon.hopkins@proactiveinvestors.com