VANCOUVER, BC, March 16, 2022 /CNW/ - Rock Tech Lithium Inc.
(TSXV: RCK) (OTCQX: RCKTF) (FWB: RJIB) (WKN: A1XF0V) (the
"Company" or "Rock Tech") is pleased to announce it
will collaborate with the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental,
Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT ("Fraunhofer") and
Circulor, the UK-based leading sustainable supply chain
traceability provider, to achieve comprehensive CO2
transparency of Rock Tech's lithium value chain - from the raw
material, spodumene, to the end product, lithium hydroxide.
Rock Tech, which plans to supply lithium hydroxide to
manufacturers of batteries for electric cars from 2024, recently
published plans for the first European lithium hydroxide factory
("Converter") in Brandenburg, Germany. The Company aims for this Converter
to become the first in the industry to achieve CO2
neutrality and a closed material cycle for both lithium and
valuable by-products.
With Fraunhofer and Circulor both possessing a clear focus on
sustainability and responsible sourcing, this collaboration will
allow Rock Tech to make a significant contribution to a holistic
view of the ecological footprint of electric cars. Perspectively,
the Company also aims to recycle the lithium contained in spent
batteries, closing the materials loop and securing sustainable
access to the raw material. Based on the work of Fraunhofer and
Circulor, Rock Tech will create a material passport for its
product. With this, the Company is anticipating the upcoming EU
Battery Regulation, which aims to ensure that batteries are
sustainable throughout their life cycle.
Markus Brügmann, CEO of Rock Tech Lithium commented: "A holistic
documentation of our value chain will allow us to provide
information about the origin and environmental balance of our
lithium hydroxide, creating a decisive added value for our
customers."
Life Cycle Assessment
Fraunhofer supports Rock Tech in recording all material and
energy flows and calculating the life cycle assessment of processes
along the entire value chain. This starts with the raw material
itself and ends with the delivery of the high-quality lithium
hydroxide to customers. Based on the data obtained, Rock Tech
intends to further optimize the production process already in the
planning phase - with the aim of reducing energy requirements as
much as possible.
According to Dr. Ilka Gehrke,
head of the Environment and Resource Utilization department at
Fraunhofer, "Extensive collection and analysis of their data not
only allows Rock Tech to design the production of lithium hydroxide
more sustainably, but also supports them in implementing subsequent
process optimizations in the most energy and environmentally
friendly way possible."
Fraunhofer specializes in the areas of climate-neutral energy
systems, resource-efficient processes, and circular products,
making concrete contributions to the achievement of the United
Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Innovative technologies,
products and services for the circular economy that can be
implemented on an industrial scale are developed at the Oberhausen
research institute. With a total of over 30,000 employees, the
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is the largest organization for applied
research and development services in Europe.
Comprehensive Transparency
Circulor provides Rock Tech with lithium traceability from the
raw material source to the lithium hydroxide plant in Germany. The Company tracks raw materials in
real-time using a software solution, even when they change physical
state, as is the case with lithium. Furthermore, Circulor also
offers traceability of CO₂ emissions generated in the supply
chain, allowing Rock Tech to analyze and manage them at every stage
of the delivery process.
"We at Circulor are proud of this collaboration. It will enable
Rock Tech to bring lithium to market with a clearly traceable
origin and clear information on CO₂ emissions generated," said
Douglas Johnson-Poensgen, CEO and founder of Circulor. "With the
automotive industry already preparing for the EU Battery Directive
and Battery Passport regulations, those who can demonstrate such
sustainable practices have a clear advantage."
Circulor is the leading provider of sustainable supply chain
traceability. The Company's customers include Volvo Cars, Polestar,
Jaguar Land Rover, BHP and Boeing.
At the same time, the digitalized provision of material and
energy flows is a prerequisite for the economic reprocessing of
batteries. Rock Tech Lithium's goal is to become the first
closed-loop supplier of lithium hydroxide. Currently, only one
percent of lithium from batteries is recycled worldwide. The
German-Canadian company aims to use 50 percent recycled materials
from spent batteries in the production of battery-grade lithium
hydroxide by 2030 at the latest.
About Rock Tech Lithium Inc.
Rock Tech Lithium is a cleantech company with operations in
Canada and Germany that aims to supply the automotive
industry with high quality lithium hydroxide "made in Germany". As early as 2024, the Company
intends to commission Europe's
first lithium converter with a nameplate production capacity of
24,000 tonnes per year. This is equivalent to the volume needed to
equip around 500,000 electric cars with lithium-ion batteries.
The Company has set itself the goal of creating the world's
first closed loop for lithium, thus closing the raw material gap on
the road to clean mobility. Rock Tech owns the Georgia Lake Project
in Ontario, Canada and, as early
as 2030, around 50 percent of the raw materials used are expected
to come from the recycling of batteries.
Rock Tech Lithium - The super fuel for the battery
age
www.rocktechlithium.com
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Dirk Harbecke
Chairman
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation
Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
Cautionary Note Concerning Forward-Looking
Information
The following cautionary statements are in addition to all other
cautionary statements and disclaimers contained elsewhere in, or
referenced by, this press release.
Certain information set forth in this press release contains
"forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements"
(collectively, "forward-looking information") within the meaning of
applicable securities laws, which are based on Rock Tech's current
expectations, estimates, and assumptions in light of its experience
and its perception of historical trends. All statements other than
statements of historical facts may constitute forward-looking
information. Often, forward-looking information can be identified
by the use of words or phrases such as "estimate", "project",
"anticipate", "expect", "intend", "believe", "hope", "may" and
similar expressions, as well as "will", "shall" and all other
indications of future tense. All forward-looking information set
forth in this press release is expressly qualified in its entirety
by the cautionary statements referred to in this section.
In particular, this news release contains forward-looking
information pertaining to: the features and location of the
proposed Converter, including the costs and benefits thereof;
statements regarding future plans, estimates, and schedules
relating to the Company's Converter strategy; anticipated
production of lithium hydroxide and related processing methods;
statements and expectations regarding the electric vehicle
industry; Rock Tech's planning, approval and decision-making
process, including relevant factors taken into consideration by the
Company; Rock Tech's opinions, beliefs and expectations regarding
the Company's business strategy, development and exploration
opportunities and projects, and plans and objectives of management
for the Company's operations and properties.
Forward-looking information contained in this press release is
based on certain assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and
opinions of the Company and in certain cases, third party experts,
that are believed by management of Rock Tech to be reasonable at
the time they were made. Such assumptions, estimates and other
factors include, among other things: the supply and demand for,
deliveries of, and the level and volatility of prices of, feedstock
and intermediate and final lithium products, expected growth,
performance and business operations, future commodity prices and
exchange rates, prospects, growth opportunities and financing
available to the Company, general business and economic conditions,
results of development and exploration, Rock Tech's ability to
procure supplies and other equipment necessary for its business.
The foregoing list is not exhaustive of all assumptions which may
have been used in developing the forward-looking information. While
Rock Tech considers these assumptions, estimates and factors to be
reasonable based on information currently available, they may prove
to be incorrect. Forward-looking information should not be read as
a guarantee of future performance or results.
In addition, forward-looking information involves known and
unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, many of which
are beyond Rock Tech's control, that may cause Rock Tech's actual
events, results, performance and/or achievements to be materially
different from that which is expressed or implied by such
forward-looking information. Risks and uncertainties that may
cause actual events, results, performance and/or achievements to
vary materially include the Company's ability to access funding
required to invest in available opportunities and projects
(including the proposed Converter) and on satisfactory terms, the
current and potential adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and
recent geopolitical hostilities; the risk that Rock Tech will not
be able to meet its financial obligations as they fall due, changes
in commodity and other prices, Rock Tech's ability to attract and
retain skilled staff and to secure feedstock from third party
suppliers, unanticipated events and other difficulties related to
construction, development and operation of the proposed Converter,
the cost of compliance with current and future environmental and
other laws and regulations, title defects, competition from
existing and new competitors, changes in currency, exchange rates
and market prices of Rock Tech's securities, Rock Tech's history of
losses, impacts of climate change and other risks and uncertainties
described from time to time in Rock Tech's public disclosure
documents available on the Company's SEDAR profile at
www.sedar.com, including those discussed under the heading
"Financial Instruments and Other Risks" in Rock Tech's most
recently filed Management Discussion and Analysis. Such risks and
uncertainties do not represent an exhaustive list of all risk
factors that could cause actual events, results, performance and/or
achievements to vary materially from the forward-looking
information.
We cannot assure you that actual events, results, performance
and/or achievements will be consistent with the forward-looking
information and management's assumptions may prove to be incorrect.
Forward-looking information reflects Rock Tech management's views
as at the date the information is created. Except as may be
required by law, Rock Tech undertakes no obligation and expressly
disclaims any responsibility, obligation or undertaking to update
or to revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise, to reflect any
change in Rock Tech's expectations or any change in events,
conditions or circumstances on which any such information is
based.
Given these uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to rely on
the forward-looking information set forth in this press
release.
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SOURCE Rock Tech Lithium Inc.