Flash Metals USA wins Department of Defense contract to recover gallium from waste streams

Metallium (ASX: MTM) said on Tuesday its Flash Metals USA subsidiary has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract by the US Department of Defense (DoD) valued at A$100,000 ($65,200).

The award will apply to Metallium’s proprietary heating process for recovering gallium from waste streams, including LED scrap. These feedstocks also contain germanium and other valuable metals, broadening the project’s strategic impact, the company said.

Gallium is a US-designated critical material essential for defence, semiconductors and communications. Current supply is dominated by non-allied nations, creating national security risks.

Last month, Flash Metals reported it has made progress on its technology campus in Chambers County, Texas – the site of its first commercial-scale metal recovery plant in the US.

The facility uses the ‘flash joule heating’ (FJH) method, which was originally developed to produce graphene from carbon sources like food waste, later adapted in 2021 by researchers at Rice University to recover rhodium, palladium, gold and silver from electronic waste. 

“This award, although small in terms of dollar value, is significant as it represents our first funding from the US Department of Defense,” Metallium CEO Michael Walshe said in a news release. “By demonstrating our technology for gallium recovery, we continue to build US-based solutions that can reduce reliance on foreign supply chains and directly support national security priorities.”

The program will be executed by Flash Metals Texas as prime contractor, with Rice University engaged under a resource and cost-sharing arrangement.

The work is expected to be completed within six months, Metallium said.