PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--American Zinc Recycling LLC (the “Company”) is pleased to announce that a subsidiary of Glencore plc (“Glencore”) has purchased a 10% stake in its wholly-owned subsidiary American Zinc Recycling Corp. ( “AZR Corp.”). This strategic investment has been made in connection with the restart of operations at AZR Corp.’s Mooresboro Zinc Refinery (the “Mooresboro Refinery”) located in Mooresboro, North Carolina, and furthermore involves a commitment by Glencore to purchase and a subsidiary of AZR Corp to sell all of the zinc metal produced at the Mooresboro Refinery for a period of 10 years after commencement of production.
In connection with the strategic investment, the Board of Directors of the Company has approved a capital spending plan to put the Mooresboro Refinery into full production. Following the completion of the strategic investment, the Company believes that this capital spending plan is well funded.
Transaction Highlights
- Glencore to take up a 10% stake in AZR Corp.
- Subsidiaries of Glencore and AZR Corp. have entered into a Technical Services Agreement and Consultancy Agreement pursuant to which Glencore will provide, among other things, engineering and project management services directed at accelerating the restart of the Mooresboro Refinery.
- A subsidiary of both Glencore and AZR Corp. have also entered into an Off-take Agreement for a term of 10 years, whereby Glencore has committed to purchase and AZR Corp. to sell the full metal output of the Mooresboro Refinery at prevailing market rates, commencing upon the successful restart of the Mooresboro Facility.
- AZR Corp. and a subsidiary of Glencore have also entered into a separate short term zinc calcine off-take agreement.
- Glencore will be entitled to appoint one member of the Board of Directors of AZR Corp.
“This transaction represents a major step forward in our advancement of the Mooresboro project. We are pleased to have attracted the commitment of a world-class operator like Glencore who shares our ambition to advance the project rapidly into production. Glencore’s zinc process engineering and general project execution expertise will enhance our own ongoing activities aimed at rapidly restarting production at Mooresboro,” stated Rodrigo Daud, CEO of American Zinc Recycling LLC.
Chris Eskdale, Head of Assets for Glencore Zinc, stated, “Glencore is pleased to be deploying its technical and commercial expertise to work in this unique partnership with AZR, both at Mooresboro and across the AZR group.”
BMO Capital Markets is acting as exclusive financial advisor to the Company and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP was retained as legal advisor.
About Mooresboro
The Mooresboro Zinc Refinery is located in Mooresboro, North Carolina and utilizes a solvent extraction process to produce special high-grade zinc and alloys by processing waelz oxide and other zinc-bearing secondary materials. Waelz oxide sourced from the company’s other facilities will provide the primary feed for Mooresboro. The Mooresboro Refinery utilizes low-cost, environmentally-friendly processes to selectively refine valuable metals. The Company is currently working on the restart of the Mooresboro Refinery.
About American Zinc Recycling
American Zinc Recycling Corp. is a leading recycler of electric arc furnace dust. Its parent company, American Zinc Recycling LLC, also owns The International Metals Reclamation Company, LLC (“INMETCO”), a leading recycler of metals-bearing wastes and a leading processor of nickel-cadmium (NiCd) batteries in North America and American Zinc Products LLC (formerly Horsehead Metals Products, LLC), the owner and operator of the Mooresboro, North Carolina facility. American Zinc Recycling LLC, headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, employs approximately 450 people and has six facilities throughout the U.S. The company recently completed the sale of its Zochem facility located in Brampton, Ontario to allow it to focus on its core recycling businesses. Visit http://www.azr.com for more information.
About Glencore
Glencore is one of the world’s largest global diversified natural resource companies and a major producer and marketer of more than 90 commodities. The Group's operations comprise around 150 mining and metallurgical sites, oil production assets and agricultural facilities.
With a strong footprint in both established and emerging regions for natural resources, Glencore's industrial and marketing activities are supported by a global network of more than 90 offices located in over 50 countries.
Glencore's customers are industrial consumers, such as those in the automotive, steel, power generation, oil and food processing sectors. We also provide financing, logistics and other services to producers and consumers of commodities. Glencore's companies employ around 155,000 people, including contractors.
Glencore is proud to be a member of the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights and the International Council on Mining and Metals. We are an active participant in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.