Precious metals mining and production firm Sibanye-Stillwater Group says it has entered into a purchase agreement to acquire Metallix Refining Inc., based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, USA for $82 million (R1.5 billion).
Metallix is described by the South African firm as a producer of recycled precious metals, including gold, silver and platinum group metals (PGMs), primarily from industrial waste streams. The company operates two processing and recycling operations in Greenville, North Carolina, and just last month publicised a new type of furnace technology it has deployed.
In addition to serving customers in the United States from North Carolina, Sibanye-Stillwater describes Metallix as having a global customer base that it serves from facilities in the United Kingdom and South Korea.
For the South African firm, which acquired Abington Reldan Metals LLC, a precious metals recycling business based in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, USA in early 2024, the transaction does not mark its entry into the US market. The company has been operating in the US since 2017, when it purchased Stillwater Mining Co., which operated a metallurgical and platinum group metals (PGM) recycling complex in Montana. The Columbus metallurgical complex is one of America’s largest recyclers of PGMs derived from spent catalytic converters and other industrial sources along with processing PGMs extracted from its underground mines.
“Metallix complements Sibanye-Stillwater’s US recycling operations in Montana and Pennsylvania, adding processing capacity, proprietary technology and extensive knowledge and experience,” according to the company.
Metallix has been operating for more than 60 years and in 2024, processed about 1.9 million kilograms of inbound precious metals-bearing materials to produce approximately 595 kilograms of gold, 24 777 kilograms of silver, 1 360 kilograms ounces of palladium, 1 360 kilograms of platinum, 114 kilograms of rhodium, 85 kilograms of iridium and 7.455 tons of copper.
“The acquisition enhances the Group’s global recycling reach and internal logistics capabilities, increasing its ability to source materials from multiple regions [and] facilitating the delivery of end-to-end solutions to customers,” says Sibanye-Stillwater of the combination.
Sibanye-Stillwater refers to Metallix as having recorded positive earnings and cash flow recently and says the acquired firm is “expected to contribute positively to the Sibanye-Stillwater Group earnings and cash flow immediately.”
“We are excited to be adding Metallix to our existing recycling footprint. The scale, technology and know-how adds positively to our existing recycling operations and advances our urban mining strategy,” says Sibanye-Stillwater CEO Neal Froneman.
“We expect significant value uplift through the large number of synergies with our existing recycling operations,” he says.
Sibanye-Stillwater describes itself as a multinational mining and metals processing group with operations that include projects and investments on five continents, including recycling and mine tailings treatment operations.
The transaction, which the South African firm says it has chosen to disclose even though Metallix is a privately held firm, is expected to close during this year’s third quarter, subject to regulatory approvals, adds Sibanye-Stillwater.
