Metallium’s wholly owned US subsidiary, Flash Metals USA, has entered into a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Traxys North America to explore commercial opportunities in the critical metals sector.

The collaboration will focus on evaluating supply chain projects involving a range of metals deemed significant for defence, technology, and energy transition applications.

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.Find out more

The MoU, effective from 16 October 2026 and set to run until 30 November 2027, outlines a framework for assessing opportunities rather than establishing any binding commercial or financial commitments.

According to the agreement, the companies will work together to identify and prioritise feedstocks, review site economics, assess product requirements, and negotiate terms for potential transactions.

Both parties intend to progress specific projects to definitive agreements by 31 December 2026, though timelines may be adjusted by mutual consent.

Traxys, a global commodities trader with annual revenues exceeding $10bn, brings experience in sourcing, marketing, logistics, trade finance, and customer access.

Metallium will contribute its Flash Joule Heating (FJH) processing platform and development at its Texas facility.

The scope of the evaluation includes critical metals such as magnetic rare earths, germanium, indium, gallium, tungsten, copper, titanium, nickel, manganese, magnesium, and platinum group metals (PGMs).

Metallium managing director and CEO Michael Walshe said: “America’s critical-metals security depends on being able to process materials into usable products on American soil.

“Midstream processing is essential to that capability, and FJH is central to the solution Metallium is developing. Our aim is to unlock metals from complex or stranded feedstocks for downstream refining & manufacturing.”

While Traxys is named by the US Export-Import Bank (EXIM) as a supplier for Project Vault, a critical minerals reserve initiative, the current MoU does not confer any government funding, endorsement, or participation in Project Vault on Metallium or its subsidiary.

Any binding offtake, financing, investment, or supply arrangements are subject to future technical and commercial assessment, and will require separate, definitive contracts.

The MoU specifies that Flash Metals USA will not enter talks on other collaborations covering the same scope with different parties until the end of 2026, though Traxys faces no similar restriction.

The companies have clarified that outcomes including supply, processing, sales, or investment will rely on future project development and agreement of contract terms.