American Manganese has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Zenith Chemical Corporation to develop a strategic expansion plan into Asia’s lithium-ion battery recycling market.
The firms will work together to achieve the timeline and milestones that would mutually benefit American Manganese’s (AMY) patented technology and Zenith’s supply network.
Canadian lithium-ion battery cathode recycler AMY plans to produce high-nickel cathode precursors, such as NMC811 and NMC9x, at pilot and demonstration plant scale under the MoU.
Taiwans’ Zenith— a producer of nickel sulfate for the lithium-ion battery supply chain— will then validate the material specifications and convert the precursor material into cathode active material to test its properties in lithium-ion batteries.
Zenith aims to expand its business into battery recycling and high-value cathode precursor materials.
Zenith’s existing nickel processing plant in Taiwan can produce up to 45,000 tons/year of nickel sulfate.
Pure lithium sulfate
Last October, American Manganese successfully produced lithium sulfate (Li2SO4) with 99.99% purity using the Canadian firm’s RecycLiCo™ lithium-ion battery recycling process.
The bulk sample of lithium sulfate was sent to an unnamed international lithium producer for validation.
