Aurubis hosts Jill Biden in Georgia

Aurubis AG's under-construction facility in Augusta, Georgia, received a visit from First Lady Jill Biden in early November.

Biden visited the Aurubis Richmond facility as part of the Biden-Harris administration’s “Investing in America” agenda. Augusta is one of five focus regions, known as Workforce Hubs, where a large number of jobs for skilled workers are to be created as a result of significant federal and private-sector investments.

“It is truly an honor to have First Lady Jill Biden visit our Aurubis Richmond site,” Aurubis Chief Operations Officer of Multimetal Recycling Inge Hofkens says. “By building this state-of-the-art recycling plant, Aurubis is creating long-term, secure jobs for more than 200 people here in an industry that is strategically important to the U.S.

“The metals we return to circulation are essential to the mobility and energy transition and an important contribution to the electrical vehicle ecosystem. This also fits perfectly to Georgia’s Electric Mobility and Innovation Alliance initiative. The Workforce Hub initiative supports our commitment to training workers for the challenging tasks in our secondary smelter.”

Aurubis is investing about $700 million to build what it bills as the first secondary smelter for complex recycling materials in North America. Commissioning of the facility is planned for the second half of 22024.

An expansion of the plant already is under construction, which will allow Aurubis Richmond to process a total of 180,000 tons of complex recycling materials, such as printed circuit boards and insulated copper cable annually, starting in 2026.

The metals producer says Georgia offers "ideal conditions for tapping the great growth potential of the U.S. recycling market."

“Increasing awareness for sustainability and a significant jump in collection volumes are generating roughly 6 million tons of recyclable, metal-bearing materials in the U.S. every year, a main driver for the investment decision of Aurubis," the company says.

“The pro-business climate and excellent infrastructure in Georgia, including logistics and a stable energy supply at competitive prices, provides Aurubis with perfect conditions for profitable growth,” Aurubis CEO Roland Harings says.

“Thanks to the support of Georgia state officials, we continue to see opportunities for contributing our expertise and becoming a multi-metal recycling pioneer in the U.S.”

On the federal level, Harings says the Inflation Reduction Act offers additional potential to accelerate Aurubis’s future U.S. growth and investment.

“We are in a strong financial position as a company and ready to invest more in the U.S. in keeping with our ‘Metals for Progress: Driving Sustainable Growth’ strategy,” Harings says.