Calix is pleased to announce today that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and services agreement to jointly develop its electric calcination technology for Zero Emissions ALumina (ZEAL) with a leading global aluminium company.
Calix and the Alumina Company (which remains commercial-in-confidence) will jointly engage in the development of electric calcination for near-zero emissions alumina by undertaking a pilot-scale material testing program and pre-Front-End Engineering Design (pre-FEED) study. The material testing program and pre-FEED study are expected to deliver over AU$1.0M in revenue to Calix.
In welcoming the announcement, Calix CEO and Managing Director, Phil Hodgson said “We are delighted to begin materials testing and technology development with a major global alumina company for near zero emissions smelter grade alumina.
“This announcement marks a few important milestones for Calix,” Dr Hodgson continued. “It will deliver our first revenues in alumina. For our Sustainable Processing line of business, it builds on commercial traction in the lithium market with a new engagement with a leading global player in a second application of the same core technology.”
About Calix’s ZEAL technology
Calix’s ZEAL technology aims to use Calix’s core platform technology to produce smelter grade alumina, with the potential to enable zero scope 1 emissions in the energy-intensive calcination of bauxite to alumina.
ZEAL also aims to reduce costs for alumina producers. Electric calcination of alumina has the potential to be more energy efficient, as electric heating replaces fuel combustion and creates high purity steam for potential reuse within the process. ZEAL’s precise and indirect heating approach may also reduce particle breakage and control the temperature to maximise yields, providing further benefits to both product quality and process efficiency.
Material testing, pre-FEED and technology development
Paid pilot-scale testing at Calix’s Technology Centre in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria aims to demonstrate the potential of the ZEAL technology to produce smelter grade alumina from feedstock used at a refinery of the Alumina Company. The pre-FEED study aims to further develop the process and plant basis of design for the ZEAL technology’s potential application in a commercial alumina refinery.
The MOU establishes the intention to jointly develop designs to apply the ZEAL technology in integrated and scalable electric alumina calcination systems. The combined materials testing, pre-FEED study and collaborative technology development program is designed to develop and demonstrate the viability, efficiency and scalability of the ZEAL technology for commercial alumina calcination.
The agreements follow Calix’s successful initial testing of the ZEAL technology and separate engagement with the Heavy Industry Low-carbon Transition Cooperative Research Centre (HILT-CRC) AlumiNEXT project.
Calix will retain all Intellectual Property (IP) relating to the core Calix technology and retains the right to deploy its ZEAL technology as an industry-wide solution for alumina calcination.
Dr Hodgson added, “This announcement also further validates our commercialisation strategy – developing partnerships with global industry leaders and creating self-funded projects that generate immediate revenues on a pathway to commercial demonstration in extremely large addressable markets.
“We look forward to the journey ahead with this major new global partner as we aim to demonstrate the lowest-cost pathway to near-zero emissions alumina.”
Decarbonising aluminium
Aluminium is a strong and lightweight metal that plays a critical role in many sectors including aviation, defence and energy. Aluminium is typically produced by first refining the ore bauxite to alumina, or aluminium oxide, before smelting alumina to make aluminium metal. The global alumina market size surpassed US$45 billion in 2022 and is projected to be worth approximately US$72 billion by 2030, while the broader aluminium market is projected to grow from US$250 billion in 2024 to US$400 billion by 2032.
Aluminium production, however, is highly energy intensive. The calcination step in the refining of bauxite to alumina typically uses fossil fuel heating to reach the required process temperatures of ~1000°C – this is the process step ZEAL aims to replace. Large amounts of electricity are then required in smelting alumina to make aluminium metal. The production of aluminium results in 1.1 billon tonnes of annual carbon dioxide emissions, approximately 2% of total global industrial emissions.
