Commodity and trading and mining company Glencore has established a partnership with an industrial mining group Managem to produce cobalt from recycled battery materials in Morocco.
Under the deal, the companies will work together to produce cobalt from recycled cobalt, nickel and lithium at Managem’s Compagnie de Tifnout Tiranimine (CTT) hydrometallurgical refinery at Guemssa near Marrakech.
Glencore and CTT are expected to enter into a five-year tolling agreement for nearly 1.2kt of recycled cobalt per year as well as nickel hydroxide and lithium carbonate.
Managem chairman and CEO Imad Toumi said: “Managem is fully engaged in supporting the global circular economy through cobalt, nickel and lithium at the same time as mining cobalt with the highest CSR standards. This partnership with Glencore represents an exciting step up in our development in this field.”
The partnership is subject to a feasibility study to evaluate the commercial viability of modifying and deploying the CTT refinery to recover cobalt, nickel and lithium from black mass.
With a focus on achieving high recoveries and a low carbon footprint, the feasibility study is expected to be completed by the end of first quarter this year.
To deliver cobalt containing black mass to the CTT refinery, Glencore will leverage its capabilities in sourcing and recycling cobalt and nickel bearing products at its Canadian and Norwegian operations.
As part of the partnership, Managem will offer the lithium-ion batteries recycling technology that is tested in the pilot plant at the REMINEX R&D Centre.
Glencore cobalt trader head David Brocas said: “Glencore is already a leading producer, recycler and supplier of these commodities, helping to underpin our ambition of achieving net zero total emissions by 2050.”
In August last year, Glencore and UK-based lithium-ion battery manufacturer Britishvolt have signed a long-term partnership for the supply of responsibly sourced cobalt to the latter.
