Aqua Metals' lead-acid battery recycling technology winner of Breakthrough Solution of the Year

ALAMEDA, California - Aqua Metals, Inc., which is commercializing a non-polluting electrochemical lead recycling technology called AquaRefining, was named winner of the Platts Global Metals Award, presented by S&P Global Platts, for the Breakthrough Solution of the Year. This is the second year in a row that Aqua Metals has been recognized for its innovation and leadership in the metals world. Both awards recognize the AquaRefining process, the lead industry's first environmentally friendly technology for lead-acid battery recycling.

"To be recognized by a renowned global organization two years in a row delivers credibility to the significant progress we've made in bringing AquaRefining to commercialization," said Dr. Stephen Clarke, chairman and CEO of Aqua Metals. "This is a reflection of the sheer talent and hard work of our team, as we ramped up production at our flagship AquaRefinery over the past several months." 

Aqua Metals' patent-pending AquaRefining process is a closed-loop, room temperature electrochemical process that emits virtually no harmful byproducts. The modular design of the AquaRefining technology enables unprecedented scalability, allowing for the co-location of lead-acid battery manufacturing, distribution and recycling. For the first time, the lead industry has an environmentally and economically sustainable solution to efficiently recycle lead-acid batteries.

This year's Platts award comes on the heels of the Company's acceptance of the San Francisco Business Times Tech and Innovation award, recognizing Aqua Metals as one of the most innovative companies in the Bay Area.

Aqua Metals executives attended the Platts awards ceremony in London on May 18, 2017, where the winners were announced. The Company was also named finalist for two additional awards -  Deal of the Year and Industry Leadership - Base & Specialty Metals. Last year, Aqua Metals won the Rising Star award and was a finalist in the Industry Leadership - Base & Specialty Metals category. The awards consider entrants from over 150 countries and represent a prestigious industry honor for innovation.
About Aqua Metals

Aqua Metals, Inc. is reinventing lead recycling with its patent-pending AquaRefining technology. Unlike smelting, AquaRefining is a room temperature, water-based process that is fundamentally non-polluting. These modular systems allow the Company to vastly reduce environmental impact and scale lead acid recycling production capacity both by building its own AquaRefineries and licensing the AquaRefining technology to partners. This meets growing demand for lead to power new applications including stop/start automobile batteries which complement the vehicle's main battery, Internet data centers, alternative energy applications including solar, wind, and grid scale storage. Aqua Metals is based in Alameda, California, and has built its first recycling facility in Nevada's Tahoe Reno Industrial Complex. www.aquametals.com.