Heraeus has acquired McCol Metals, a Canadian recycler that specializes in recovering iridium from spent mixed metal oxide electrodes. McCol Metals will continue its recycling operations in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The site will be operated by Heraeus Precious Metals, the precious metals division of the Heraeus Group.
"McCol Metals is a perfect fit for Heraeus Precious Metals. With this acquisition we are further expanding our leading competency in recycling precious metals" said Marius Vigener, executive vice president at Heraeus Precious Metals. "With McCol Metals' innovative recycling technology, we are following our ambition to keep as much precious metals in the loop as possible."
Following years of research and dedication, McCol Metals has developed a process to facilitate the recovery and recycling of the valuable precious metal iridium from spent mixed metal oxide (MMO) electrodes. MMO electrodes are used as anodes in electrochemical processes, for example in the production of chlorine, copper foils for batteries, water treatment, and electro-winning. Iridium plays a vital role as a conducting and catalyzing layer that is applied to the electrodes to aid the necessary reactions.
Until the acquisition, McCol Metals has been owned by Eastern Composite Services (ECS), a Newfoundland and Labrador-based provider of specialized industrial services for the mining, marine, and energy sectors.
"For many years, we've cultivated a strong business relationship with Heraeus Precious Metals," said Andrew Colford, chief executive officer at Eastern Composite Services. "Through our longstanding collaboration, we've recognized them as our preferred partner to propel McCol Metals into its next stage of development. We look forward to Heraeus' leadership and expertise driving continued innovation and success for McCol Metals under their ownership."
Due to its temperature and corrosion resistance, conductivity, and catalytic properties, iridium is in demand for a wide variety of industrial applications. For example, it is indispensable for the ramp-up of the green hydrogen economy. Given their limited availability, high value and high CO2 emissions during extraction and processing, it is essential to keep precious metals such as iridium in the economic cycle and recover them from end-of-life materials.
