Green Tech Co. Files Expanded 'Zero-Waste' Patent

BacTech Environmental Corp. (BAC:CSE;BCCEF:OTCQB;OBT1:FRA) announced Thursday it had filed its expanded application for what it says is the first zero-waste bioleaching process for recovering metals, fertilizer, and iron from millions of tons of mine tailings worldwide.

"From 1 tonne of waste, we hope to sell five different products leaving behind zero waste," President and Chief Executive Officer Ross Orr wrote in his weekly email to shareholders and supporters.

Those products are iron for steel or battery manufacturing, premium organic fertilizer, and the base metals nickel, cobalt, and copper.

What's left are silicates that can be used for industrial filler or a paste for backfilling in mines.

BacTech said it's independently estimated that there are 80 to 100 million tonnes of pyrrhotite tails in the Sudbury, Ontario, basin, containing 60% iron, 30% to 35% sulfur, 0.85% nickel, and 0.03% cobalt, in addition to the copper that has been deposited over the past 100 years of mining.

"Just imagine the amount of iron that exists in tailings globally," Orr wrote. "Think of the current miners possibly going back to their tails and producing a saleable product AND improving the environmental footprint. Talk about a circular economy?"

The company's newest intellectual property (IP) retains the bioleaching approach to recovering metal values and producing multiple commodities from low-grade mine wastes, but now introduces the novel innovations of converting soluble iron into iron metal for green steel making and producing ammonium sulfate fertilizer from the sulfur which is converted to acid during bioleaching.

Pyrrhotite is a highly reactive iron sulfide mineral that reacts strongly when exposed to oxygen, releasing soluble acidic iron harmful to the environment.

"Imagine you want to make some steel, but you don’t have any iron ore or a blast furnace or any polluting coal that you need to fire up the furnace," Orr wrote. "Or imagine you also need some organic fertilizer, but you can’t easily access sulfuric acid, a vital ingredient to make organic fertilizer. … If you have access to some old mine tailings lying around (and there are a lot) then this patent is your meal ticket."

The Catalyst: Syncing With Industry Environmental Trends

BacTech noted that its technology is "in sync" with industry trends toward environmentally conscious investing in the industry.

"BacTech's IP development path specifically aligns with broader trends across mining and steel industry operations, consistent with continued public and policymaker calls to shift processes and reduce carbon emissions," Orr said in Thursday's release.

The global iron ore market was valued at US$297.35 billion in 2023, and is projected to grow to US$397.98 by 2032, according to Fortune Business Insights. But green steel is made using green hydrogen without the use of fossil fuels. Allied Market Research expects an even bigger explosion of wealth in that market: from US$200 million in 2022 to US$364.5 billion by 2032.

"Given how significant this news is, it is thought likely that the stock will initially run at least to the resistance level in the 9 to 10 cent area," wrote Maund, who said he was staying long and rated the stock a Strong Buy for all timeframes.

"Consumer and producer motivation for sustainable products and increasing government initiatives globally have contributed significantly to boosting the growth of the global green steel market," Allied researchers noted.

MIRARCO, (Mining Innovation, Rehabilitation, and Applied Research Corporation), led by Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk, has assembled a pilot-scale bioleach circuit in Sudbury where the BacTech technology will undergo test work to break down the pyrrhotite sulfide mineral into its individual elements, BacTech said.

The company bioleached pyrrhotite material 25 years ago at Radio Hill, Australia. It said it is confident that it can duplicate those results.

'Uber-Exciting Stuff'

Longtime supporter and shareholder Chris Temple, author and editor of The National Investor, called the news "uber-exciting stuff."

"As much as 90% of the total value in tailings materials such as those specifically at issue in Sudbury (which would probably have long since been deemed a 'Superfund' area/story by the EPA were it in the US) could conceivably come from the iron and fertilizer production," Temple wrote.

Technical Analyst Clive Maund had recommended BacTech in February, when it was at CA$0.06 a share. It went on to stabilize and broke higher when the news of the IP expansion first dropped Friday.

"Given how significant this news is, it is thought likely that the stock will initially run at least to the resistance level in the 9 to 10 cent area," wrote Maund, who said he was staying long and rated the stock a Strong Buy for all timeframes.

"It is hard to overstate the significance of the technology BacTech has developed for the mining industry and the environment worldwide," Maund wrote, adding the stock has "huge potential upside." 

"There are hundreds of millions or even thousands of millions of tons of these tailings lying around all over the world, which are a nuisance and a pollutant," he wrote.

"BacTech's technology has the capacity to convert all of this waste into profitable assets and clean up the mess at the same time. This is why, given that BacTech has patented its processes and technology, its stock has such huge potential upside."

Ownership and Share Structure

Nearly half of the company, 49%, is held by insiders, management, and strategic shareholders, the biggest of which is Option Three Advisory Services Ltd., which owns 8.48%, or 15.57 million shares, according to Reuters. That also includes CEO Orr, who owns 3.57% or 6.54 million shares, and Board Director Timothy Lewin, who owns 0.54% or 0.98 million shares.

The rest is retail.

The company has 193.04 million shares outstanding. Its market cap is CA$12.98 million, and it trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.10 and CA$0.05.

Important Disclosures:

1. BacTech Environmental Corp. is a billboard sponsor of Streetwise Reports and pays SWR a monthly sponsorship fee between US$4,000 and US$5,000. In addition, BacTech Environmental Corp. has a consulting relationship with an affiliate of Streetwise Reports, and pays a monthly consulting fee between US$8,000 and US$20,000.
2. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of BacTech Environmental Corp. 
3. Steve Sobek wrote this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise Reports as an employee.
4.  This article does not constitute investment advice and is not a solicitation for any investment. Streetwise Reports does not render general or specific investment advice and the information on Streetwise Reports should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her personal financial adviser and perform their own comprehensive investment research. By opening this page, each reader accepts and agrees to Streetwise Reports' terms of use and full legal disclaimer. Streetwise Reports does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company. 

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Contributing Author Disclosures:

1. Author Certification and Compensation: [Clive Maund of clivemaund.com] is being compensated as an independent contractor by Street Smart, an affiliate of Streetwise Reports, for writing this article. Maund received his UK Technical Analysts’ Diploma in 1989.  The recommendations and opinions expressed in this content accurately reflect the personal, independent, and objective views of the author regarding any and all of the designated securities discussed. No part of the compensation received by the author was, is, or will be directly or indirectly related to the specific recommendations or views expressed

Clivemaund.com Disclosures

The above represents the opinion and analysis of Mr. Maund, based on data available to him, at the time of writing. Mr. Maund's opinions are his own, and are not a recommendation or an offer to buy or sell securities. As trading and investing in any financial markets may involve serious risk of loss, Mr. Maund recommends that you consult with a qualified investment advisor, one licensed by appropriate regulatory agencies in your legal jurisdiction and do your own due diligence and research when making any kind of a transaction with financial ramifications. Although a qualified and experienced stock market analyst, Clive Maund is not a Registered Securities Advisor. Therefore Mr. Maund's opinions on the market and stocks cannot be  only be construed as a recommendation or solicitation to buy and sell securities.