Titanium materials supplier IperionX has completed the detailed engineering design for its Titanium Demonstration Facility (TDF), which will have capacity for the production of 125 metric tonnes per annum.
It has also completed the design for an expansion of its first Titanium Commercial Facility (TCF-1) of 1,125 tonnes per annum at the Southern Virginia Technology Part in Halifax County, Virginia.
Both facilities will utilise Hydrogen Assisted Metallothermic Reduction (HAMR) technologies to produce titanium metal powder, which IperionX serves to the aerospace, electric vehicle and additive manufacturing industries. IperionX believes it will equip it with the largest recycled titanium metal powder production capacity globally, and the only one using 100% titanium metal scrap as a feedstock.
The TDF is expected to begin commissioning in Q4 2023 and be operational by Q1 2024, with its run-rate of 125 tonnes per annum expected to be achieved as early as Q3 2024. This, however, is still subject to Board approval for final investment decision, which is expected in Q3 2023.
Through this facility, IperionX has projected an initial production of 15 tonnes per annum of spherical titanium metal powder and 110 tonnes per annum of angular titanium metal powder. The company then plans to install additional equipment at the facility to allow for the operational flexibility to produce either 125 tonnes per annum of 100% spherical powder or 100% angular powder for an incremental capital cost of 6.9 million USD. Cash costs for 125 tonnes per annum of spherical titanium powder production at the TDF are projected to be 72 USD/kg before contingencies.
IperionX’s larger capacity TCF-1 could be operational by Q4 2025, according to the company, if long lead time items are ordered by Q3 in 2024. This facility is designed to produce 1,125 tonnes per annum of angular or spherical titanium powder, with capital costs for this expansion totalling 70 million USD. Around 48m USD will be required for long lead time orders and the remaining 22m USD will be needed during commissioning in 2025.
Assuming a ‘conservative’ spherical titanium metal powder price of 130 USD/kg, and using key operating assumptions, IperionX estimates a potential revenue of 145m USD being generated in 2026 with these two facilities.
“The pathway for the development of the TDF and TCF-1 build upon the learnings from our current Industrial Pilot facility operations in Utah where we have been producing circular titanium metal since early 2022,” commented IperionX CEO Anastasios Arima. “The development of the TDF and TCF-1 will scale our production to commercial quantities of 100% recycled titanium metal while also reducing the cost providing the potential for titanium to compete on price with other metals, including stainless steel and aluminium.
“The US is a tier 1 fiscal and manufacturing operating environment with a large pipeline of government incentives potentially available to IperionX. We look forward to rapidly advancing our developments through 2023 and moving towards scaled up production to secure a US supply chain of this critical metal.”
