Building on battery waste

Battery chemical proponent QPM has moved to allay concerns of leakage, including heavy metals, at its proposed facility in Townsville. Environment, Social and Governance credentials were top of mind with investors in the project said Managing Director and CEO Stephen Grocott. The company is focused on developing the 100 percent-owned Townsville Energy Chemicals Hub (TECH) Project. The company told the ASX that residue test work carried out at James Cook University demonstrated that under the Townsville City Council guidelines, QPM comfortably met the threshold for all elements of potential concern except nickel. 'QPM and JCU are confident that nickel levels will also be reduced to below the threshold with additional washing.' The TECH Project will be a battery metals refinery, 40km south of Townsville producing critical metals for the rapidly emerging lithium-ion battery and electric vehicle sector. QPM has told the ASX that it’s undertaking studies to use the production waste as engineering fill. A highlight towards zero solids waste for its TECH project included ‘Positive discussions held with the Queensland Department of Environment and Science regarding the approvals process to operate under a Queensland Government End of Waste Code whereby residue would be recognised as a resource rather than a waste stream.’ “In the TECH Project, all valuable metals will be leached into solution and then recovered and refined into saleable products. “The remnant residue is only around 25 percent of the dry ore feed and it is typically comprised of silicates including quartz sand. “The ability to utilise this residue as an engineered fill would mean that 100 percent of the ore processed by the TECH Project reports to a commercial application, effectively positioning the TECH Project as zero solids waste. “Such a feat would be an industry first in the resources sector, particularly in nickel laterite processing which typically requires large tailings dams that leave significant environmental footprint. Such tailings dams usually have to hold more than 1.2 tonnes of tailings per tonne of feed ore.” Potential off-takers and financiers had been forthright in their communications to QPM regarding the importance of ESG credentials when evaluating battery metal projects, Mr Gorcott said. “They are already delighted that QPM is already world-leading through our zero-process liquid discharge, very small residue proportion and negative greenhouse gas intensity,” he said. “However, we are now going even further than this to stamp the TECH Project as a global benchmark.” “Achieving zero solids waste lifts the ESG bar to a level not even under consideration in the battery material sector,” he said. “Having been in the resources industry for over four decades, it is refreshing to see mindsets of organisations and people change to ensure that environmental impact is not just minimised but turned into greater environmental value. Test work and discussions with the regulator had led the company to this point QPM told the ASX.

Building on battery waste

Industry Queensland

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