Iondrive (ASX:ION) appointed Wave International as a contractor to lead the front-end engineering design study for a pilot plant for its sustainable battery recycling technology, according to a Thursday Australian bourse filing.
At the end of FEED study, subject to a financial investment decision, the engineering, procurement, and construction phase of the plant will begin.
The commissioning of the pilot plant is on track during the year, which will be designed as a mobile unit, initially located at the University of Adelaide.
Recent pre-pilot plant optimization trials demonstrated 100% recovery of both lithium and aluminum from untreated black mass, per the filing.
It is evaluating mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), which typically contains around 40% nickel and 1% to 10% cobalt, as a potential feedstock for its Deep Eutectic Solvent process. It recently received MHP from a US-based producer.
Its shares fell 15% on market close on Thursday.