In August 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) added copper to its list of critical materials as the U.S. shifts towards cleaner energy sources such as solar and wind. Copper’s addition to this list makes those who produce it, eligible for government subsidies under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Eric Saderholm is the managing director of exploration, company co-founder, and director of American Pacific Mining Corp., a precious and base metals explorer and developer focused on opportunities in the Western U.S. with projects in Alaska, Montana and Nevada. According to Saderholm, the global and U.S.-domestic copper recycling market and its efforts to maximize output stream will see increased attention in the coming decade, but these will never exceed or match the output or production of worldwide copper mines. New copper production will always be the key provider of copper due to finite copper recycling scrap inventories.
“No doubt, the two supply chains need to be utilized in tandem as present copper demand outstrips supply. Current hard rock mining and processing are not able to meet the escalating worldwide copper demand levels without strong input from copper recycling,” Saderholm said. “Copper recycling has been an important source of market copper for well over 30 years, now approaching 30 percent of the world supply for the red metal. That number may increase by 5 to 10 percent over the next 25 years.”
Saderholm added that this uptick in recycled sourcing comes at a time when worldwide yearly copper demand is now over 25 million metric tons and is expected to exceed 50 million metric tons by 2045. Plus, copper mines worldwide face increased production costs, closures and geopolitical challenges – just when these operations are under pressure to ramp up output.
“This means efficient recycling will not only be convenient, but essential for commercial and industrial manufacturing,” Saderholm said.
As the director of Heaton Manufacturing, Martin Heaton understands metal utilization and recycling. According to Heaton, the categorization of copper as a critical material is a significant development.
“This status reflects copper’s essential role in modern technology and renewable energy solutions and the challenges in its supply chain,” Heaton said. “At Heaton Manufacturing, we’ve seen firsthand how this designation reshapes sourcing strategies and emphasizes sustainable practices.”
In terms of the implication this designation has on the metal recycling industry, Heaton said this shift elevates the importance of efficient recycling processes and innovation in recovery techniques.
“My experience has led me to advocate for advanced sorting technologies and improved recycling infrastructure to meet the growing demand for high-purity recycled copper,” Heaton said. “The critical material status of copper reinforces our commitment to recycling and innovating in ways that reduce the ecological footprint of metal manufacturing and usage.”
The DOE adding copper to its list of critical raw materials has a profound impact on Heaton’s approach to the copper recycling market.
“It highlights copper’s crucial role in modern technology and renewable energy, emphasizing the challenges in its supply. This means a greater focus on efficient recycling processes and innovations in recovery techniques. There’s a significant opportunity here to meet the growing demand for sustainable copper sources.”
Christophe Allain, vice president, global nonferrous metals portfolio at Nexans, said copper being labeled as a critical mineral has a trickledown effect on the recycling market.
“Now, recycled copper will be considered a critical mineral in the same way virgin copper is. Hence, it’s commercialization outside of the U.S. might face challenges,” Allain said. “It could, for instance, be considered too strategic to let go as an export outside the country.”
Allain further explained that from a U.S. perspective, the main challenge for the recycling market is that the supply of scrap far surpasses demand.
“Capacity to use scrap in North America, similar to Europe, is somewhat limited. If scrap cannot be exported and local demand is not sufficient, the value of copper will drop until investment occurs,” Allain said.
At Nexans, after aluminum, copper is the main conductive material used. The company uses it to transmit electricity and data from power cables (low voltage/medium voltage/high voltage) to telecoms (LAN Cable). Copper is used in cables across many different sectors.
“In the world of decarbonized electrification to fight climate change, demand for copper will continue to grow significantly,” Allain said.
Hurdles Aplenty
The newest designation of copper is expected to further increase interest in recycling copper, but the ability to do so is multifaceted.
In Heaton’s experience, the major hurdles include:
- Developing advanced technologies for efficient and precise sorting and recovery of high-purity copper.
- Addressing supply chain complexities to ensure a consistent supply of recyclable copper.
- Maintaining the quality of recycled copper to make it suitable for high-tech applications.
- Navigating evolving environmental regulations and ensuring compliance.
- Raising public awareness about the importance of copper recycling and encouraging participation.
At Heaton Manufacturing, copper plays a pivotal role in their operations, especially considering its status as a critical material. The company is heavily invested in developing and employing processes that maximize copper’s efficient and sustainable use. This involves implementing innovative recycling techniques to reclaim high-quality copper from various sources, which is utilized in their manufacturing processes.
Saderholm further pointed out that copper recycling has been in place for quite some time but sourcing has been somewhat limited. As he explained, most recycled copper has historically been recovered simply by melting down old cathode-grade copper and reusing it once the impurities are eliminated (e.g., wiring, cables, electric engine components, etc.).
“It is a relatively simple, cost-effective procedure, and stockpiles of this type of material have remained either static or have slightly decreased since 1990,” Saderholm said. “The technology and processing capacity for this ‘simple’ class of material are in place and are keeping up with their scrap delivery and reprocessing demands for copper.”
In the future, major challenges will be in how we process copper-bearing scrap metals and alloys that are less straightforward – containing copper together with other metals and materials that are harder to recycle.
“Stockpiles of this type of material have increased by around 400 percent in that same 30 year span and are clearly outpacing processing capacity,” Saderholm said. Called end-of-life alloys, these metal alloys were originally manufactured for specific purposes with little consideration as to how to recycle them when the product’s life had terminated (e.g., a cradle-to-grave lifecycle). They include scrap brass and bronze that may contain tin, manganese, zinc, aluminum, lead, nickel and various other alloy additions.
As Saderholm explained, freeing the copper from these alloys for reuse can sometimes be problematic, especially when it comes to lead removal. Lead, a common component of brass, is toxic and is strictly limited in how much can remain in the final product after recycling.
“In the last 20 years, regulations on the amount of lead content remaining in final products have become quite restrictive,” Saderholm said. “Segregating these copper alloys into separate processing streams and minimizing costs will be essential for the economic processing of these rapidly increasing stockpiles and resources.”
Saderholm pointed to additional challenges including process location and capacity, adequate space for stockpiling, permitting concerns, environmental stewardship, social license and acceptance, ease of transport of scrap, and waste management and disposal.
“These recovery processes can be very energy consumptive and access to energy and proper infrastructure will be vital,” he said.
Now that copper has been labeled as a critical raw material, Heaton expects recycled copper playing an increasingly vital role.
“It’s importance in achieving sustainability, especially in manufacturing and renewable energy sectors, cannot be overstated,” Heaton said. “As the global community moves towards reducing environmental impact, the demand for recycled copper will inevitably rise.”
Allain said recycled copper will continue to play a significant role in the future. “One third of refined metal already comes from scrap, but now that it is labeled critical, scrap might not be exported as frequently as they have in the past and the use will need to be operated locally,” Allain said. “In the past, the U.S. has exported billions of dollars’ worth of scrap to other countries, but we will see a reduction in this trend.”
Saderholm expects that demand for copper is going to steadily increase to levels we have never seen before, at a rate that even many professionals and experts in commercial and industrial operations cannot fathom.
“Designating copper as a critical metal is a necessary first step that is long overdue; surprisingly, it took this long to receive the status,” Saderholm said. “Critical metal programs for all these designated metals (e.g., lithium, cobalt, gallium) will receive increased government funding, grants and possible tax breaks to make sure they become a robust and reliable source of future products.”
For copper recycling and reclamation, process refinement and improved metallurgical techniques are ongoing and being tested in real time.
“With additional awareness, public education, funding, and increased processing capacity,” Saderholm said, “the growth of this marketplace can be greatly expedited to meet our ever-increasing global copper demands.”
