PRIMOBIUS EXECUTES COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH MERCEDES-BENZ
HIGHLIGHTS
• Neometals battery recycling JV, Primobius, has executed a cooperation agreement (“Cooperation”) with Mercedes- Benz recycling subsidiary, LICULAR GmbH (“LICULAR”);
• The Cooperation follows a Mercedes-Benz announcement in March 2022, highlighting Primobius as its technology partner for the design and construction of a 2,500tpa lithium-ion battery recycling plant (“Recycling Plant”);
• The Cooperation is conditional upon LICULAR issuing a purchase order for the engineering, supply and installation of the necessary equipment for the Recycling Plant;
• Subject to receipt of the agreed purchase order, under the Cooperation:
o Primobiuswillenterintolong-termresearchanddevelopmentcollaborationtorecyclenextgenerationcell
formats and chemistries;
o Primobiuswillprovideanon-exclusivetechnologylicencefortheRecyclingPlant,know-how,stafftraining,
engineering and plant management support to LICULAR; and
o DuringtheRecyclingPlantoperationsphase,thepartieswilljointlyevaluateanindustrial-scaleoperationof
Primobius’ recycling technology.
• The Recycling Plant will be operated at an agreed LICULAR location (which Neometals expects to be Mercedes-
Benz’s Kuppenheim Operations in Southern Germany).
Innovative project development company, Neometals Ltd (ASX: NMT) (“Neometals” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that Primobius GmbH (“Primobius”), the incorporated joint venture (“JV”) company owned 50:50 by Neometals and SMS group GmbH (“SMS”), has executed a conditional, binding agreement (“Co-operation Agreement”) with LICULAR GmbH (“LICULAR”). LICULAR is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz AG (“Mercedes-Benz”) founded specifically for the purpose of running a specialist consortia-based research programme with Mercedes-Benz to develop a holistic and sustainable recycling approach forlithium-ionbatteries(“LIB’s”).TheformalCooperationfollowsanearlierpressreleasebyMercedes-Benz ofMarchregarding its global strategy for recycling automotive battery systems and Primobius’ role to support those objectives (for further details see Neometals announcement titled “Mercedes-Benz Press Release Regarding Battery Recycling with Primobius” dated 11th March 2022). The Cooperation will commence and become legally binding upon the receipt of an agreed form purchase order (“Agreed PO”) from LICULAR to Primobius for the supply and installation of the equipment for the construction, commissioning and operation of a LICULAR Recycling Plant for battery recycling and waste disposal, expected to be located at Mercedes-Benz’s Kuppenheim Operations in Southern Germany.
The Recycling Plant has a nominal design capacity of 10 tonnes per day (2,500 tonnes per annum) and will be built in two stages. Primobius will provide a royalty-free technology licence for the Recycling Plant’s operation, know-how and plant support to LICULAR.
The Mercedes-Benz (through LICULAR) technology partnership is a strong validation of the Primobius technology, its flexible business models and demonstrates the Company’s willingness to tailor commercial agreements to suit the recycling needs of EV car makers, LiB cell-makers and environmental service providers.
With SMS support, Primobius is advancing the engineering and design packages for LICULAR to enable the award of a purchase order for equipment supply and installation of the Recycling Plant as a next step.
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West Perth WA 6005
13 May 2022 – PRIMOBIUS EXECUTES COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH MERCEDES-BENZ
– NEOMETALS STRENGTHENS BOARD AHEAD OF DEMERGER NEOMETALS STRENGTHENS BOARD AHEAD OF DEMERGER
Other key terms of the Cooperation include:
• Subject to delivery of the Agreed PO, the parties will co-operate and collaborate regarding the operation of the Recycling Plant, with the parties subject to the following roles and responsibilities:
o Primobius will support LICULAR on the commissioning of the Recycling Plant, obtaining permits, approvals and government funding for the Recycling Plant, train LICULAR’s employees and provide on-site engineering support on a cost-free basis (subject to a cap);
o LICULARwillpurchasefromPrimobiusthenecessaryequipmentforinstallationoftheRecyclingPlant;and
o Thepartieswillshareinformationtooptimiseperformanceandjointlyevaluatethepossibilityofcommercialising
the recycling technology and circular economy approach together during the phase of Recycling Plant operations.
• Separate agreements will be entered into for the engineering of the Recycling Plant, equipment purchase and installation of
the Recycling Plant (terms to be agreed and concluded in the Agreed PO).
• The parties acknowledge that any discussions about an extended partnership towards a potential industrialisation/scale up
possibilities is planned to be jointly evaluated at a later stage (i.e. during the Recycling Plant phase).
• The Co-operation Agreement has a term until 31 December 2026, which may be extend by mutual agreement, and contains
customary provisions for termination with cause. Chris Reed says:
“We are delighted to formalise our long-term cooperation agreement with Mercedes-Benz. The R&D collaboration is as important to us as successfully supplying the equipment. We are excited to work together to develop a more holistic recycling solution covering logistics, handling, compliance and sustainability. We are grateful for the opportunity and accept the challenge to futureproof our processing technology.”
Authorised on behalf of Neometals by Christopher Reed, Managing Director
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Chris Reed
Managing Director Neometals Ltd
T: +61 8 9322 1182
E: info@neometals.com.au
About Neometals Ltd
Jeremy Mcmanus
General Manager - Commercial and IR Neometals Ltd
T: +61 8 9322 1182
E: jmcmanus@neometals.com.au