Electra Battery Materials Corporation has announced that it has signed a Benefits Agreement with the Métis Nation of Ontario (“MNO”) solidifying a relationship between the two parties and providing employment, training, procurement, and business opportunities related to the construction and expansion of the Company’s battery materials refinery north of Toronto near Temiskaming Shores.
Trent Mell, CEO of Electra Battery Materials, said: “Signing our first Benefits Agreement marks an important milestone for Electra as we advance with the commissioning of our refinery. It demonstrates our commitment to operations that are environmentally, culturally, and socially responsible, and also reflects our commitment to working with Indigenous communities in respectful and mutually beneficial ways.”
Lorette McKnight, President of the Métis Nation of Ontario Temiskaming Métis Council, said: “We welcome the signing of the Benefits Agreement and Electra’s commitment to support economic, cultural, and educational activities in the region. The construction of a battery materials plant in Ontario on the James Bay and Abitibi/Temiscamingue Métis Traditional Territories represents an exciting development that will create many opportunities while also supporting environmental sustainability through reducing carbon emissions as a result of the adoption of electric vehicles.”
In connection with the Benefits Agreement, Electra has agreed to issue 20,000 common shares of the Company to the MNO as a means of providing a measure of economic participation in the success of Electra’s low-carbon battery materials visions.
The issuance of the common shares remains subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. Once issued, the common shares will be subject to a statutory hold period of four-months-and-one-day in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Electra is advancing with the commissioning of a battery materials refinery in Temiskaming Shores, Ontario with a plant capacity of 5,100 tonnes of cobalt in sulfate. In concert with its effort to commission the refinery, Electra intends to launch a battery materials recycling demonstration plant in the fall of 2022.