Call 24/7: 1 (800) 228-0969

Supporting Green Innovation in the Industrial Services Sector

Posted: September 21, 2023

News Release from the Department of Industry, Energy and Technology, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

The Honourable Andrew Parsons, KC, Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology, today announced a provincial contribution of over $261,000 through the Innovation and Business Investment Corporation in non-repayable funding to Eastern Composite Services Inc. to support the development of a new method and processing plant for noble metal recovery.

Eastern Composite Services Inc. is also receiving advisory services and research and development funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program to support the project. In addition, the company will provide more than $240,000 of its own funding to support the project.

Following years of research and development, Eastern Composite Services Inc. has developed a state-of-the-art process to effectively facilitate the recovery and recycling of platinum group metals. Today, the company is evolving its platinum group metals recovery process to support sustainable energy production.

Adapting its existing technology, Eastern Composite Services has identified a novel method to recover and recycle platinum group metals from waste produced during hydrogen recovery. This environmentally-friendly process chemically strips and recovers platinum group metals from Polymer Electrolyte Membrane electrodes used in electrolysis of water to generate hydrogen. This provides a green alternative from current methods, which require waste incineration to dispose of these electrodes, while also enabling them to be recycled for the production of new electrodes.

Eastern Composite Services is a local company established in 2013, which employs 30 people to serve the diverse needs of the industrial sector in the province and around the globe.

Quotes

“Our government is pleased to support Eastern Composite Services in developing and commercializing an innovative metal recovery technology that will support our clean energy and manufacturing industries. The company has a successful track record in completing innovative research projects, and we believe that this project will produce similar results as well.”
Honourable Andrew Parsons, KC
Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology

“This funding represents a significant opportunity for us to further elevate our innovative technology and establish Eastern Composite Services as an internationally recognized leader in the recovery and recycling of platinum group metals. This is especially crucial in the current global context, where the transition to sustainable energy sources is paramount in our collective efforts to combat climate change. We are appreciative to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program for their invaluable support in this endeavor.”
Andrew Colford
President and CEO, Eastern Composite Services

-30-

Media Contact:
Samantha Harding
Director, Marketing and Communications
Eastern Composite Services
(709) 687-9707
sharding@easternservices.ca

Call 24/7:1-800-228-0969