Rock Tech Lithium to Collaborate with Fraunhofer Institute and Circulor to pursue CO2 neutral lithium

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Mar 16, 2022, 03:00 ET

VANCOUVER, BC, March 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Rock Tech Lithium Inc. (TSXV: RCK) (OTCQX: RCKTF) (FWB: RJIB) (WKN: A1XF0V) (the "Company" or "Rock Tech") is pleased to announce it will collaborate with the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT ("Fraunhofer") and Circulor, the UK-based leading sustainable supply chain traceability provider, to achieve comprehensive CO₂ transparency of Rock Tech's lithium value chain - from the raw material, spodumene, to the end product, lithium hydroxide.

Rock Tech, which plans to supply lithium hydroxide to manufacturers of batteries for electric cars from 2024, recently published plans for the first European lithium hydroxide factory ("Converter") in Brandenburg, Germany. The Company aims for this Converter to become the first in the industry to achieve CO₂ neutrality and a closed material cycle for both lithium and valuable by-products.

With Fraunhofer and Circulor both possessing a clear focus on sustainability and responsible sourcing, this collaboration will allow Rock Tech to make a significant contribution to a holistic view of the ecological footprint of electric cars. Perspectively, the Company also aims to recycle the lithium contained in spent batteries, closing the materials loop and securing sustainable access to the raw material. Based on the work of Fraunhofer and Circulor, Rock Tech will create a material passport for its product. With this, the Company is anticipating the upcoming EU Battery Regulation, which aims to ensure that batteries are sustainable throughout their life cycle.

Markus Brügmann, CEO of Rock Tech Lithium commented: "A holistic documentation of our value chain will allow us to provide information about the origin and environmental balance of our lithium hydroxide, creating a decisive added value for our customers."

Life Cycle Assessment

Fraunhofer supports Rock Tech in recording all material and energy flows and calculating the life cycle assessment of processes along the entire value chain. This starts with the raw material itself and ends with the delivery of the high-quality lithium hydroxide to customers. Based on the data obtained, Rock Tech intends to further optimize the production process already in the planning phase - with the aim of reducing energy requirements as much as possible.

According to Dr. Ilka Gehrke, head of the Environment and Resource Utilization department at Fraunhofer, "Extensive collection and analysis of their data not only allows Rock Tech to design the production of lithium hydroxide more sustainably, but also supports them in implementing subsequent process optimizations in the most energy and environmentally friendly way possible."

Fraunhofer specializes in the areas of climate-neutral energy systems, resource-efficient processes, and circular products, making concrete contributions to the achievement of the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Innovative technologies, products and services for the circular economy that can be implemented on an industrial scale are developed at the Oberhausen research institute. With a total of over 30,000 employees, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is the largest organization for applied research and development services in Europe.

Comprehensive Transparency

Circulor provides Rock Tech with lithium traceability from the raw material source to the lithium hydroxide plant in Germany. The Company tracks raw materials in real-time using a software solution, even when they change physical state, as is the case with lithium. Furthermore, Circulor also offers traceability of CO₂ emissions generated in the supply chain, allowing Rock Tech to analyze and manage them at every stage of the delivery process.

"We at Circulor are proud of this collaboration. It will enable Rock Tech to bring lithium to market with a clearly traceable origin and clear information on CO₂ emissions generated," said Douglas Johnson-Poensgen, CEO and founder of Circulor. "With the automotive industry already preparing for the EU Battery Directive and Battery Passport regulations, those who can demonstrate such sustainable practices have a clear advantage."

Circulor is the leading provider of sustainable supply chain traceability. The Company's customers include Volvo Cars, Polestar, Jaguar Land Rover, BHP and Boeing.

At the same time, the digitalized provision of material and energy flows is a prerequisite for the economic reprocessing of batteries. Rock Tech Lithium's goal is to become the first closed-loop supplier of lithium hydroxide. Currently, only one percent of lithium from batteries is recycled worldwide. The German-Canadian company aims to use 50 percent recycled materials from spent batteries in the production of battery-grade lithium hydroxide by 2030 at the latest.

About Rock Tech Lithium Inc.

Rock Tech Lithium is a cleantech company with operations in Canada and Germany that aims to supply the automotive industry with high quality lithium hydroxide "made in Germany". As early as 2024, the Company intends to commission Europe's first lithium converter with a nameplate production capacity of 24,000 tonnes per year. This is equivalent to the volume needed to equip around 500,000 electric cars with lithium-ion batteries.

The Company has set itself the goal of creating the world's first closed loop for lithium, thus closing the raw material gap on the road to clean mobility. Rock Tech owns the Georgia Lake Project in Ontario, Canada and, as early as 2030, around 50 percent of the raw materials used are expected to come from the recycling of batteries.

Rock Tech Lithium - The super fuel for the battery age

www.rocktechlithium.com

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Dirk Harbecke
Chairman

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Cautionary Note Concerning Forward-Looking Information

The following cautionary statements are in addition to all other cautionary statements and disclaimers contained elsewhere in, or referenced by, this press release.

Certain information set forth in this press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which are based on Rock Tech's current expectations, estimates, and assumptions in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends. All statements other than statements of historical facts may constitute forward-looking information. Often, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words or phrases such as "estimate", "project", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "believe", "hope", "may" and similar expressions, as well as "will", "shall" and all other indications of future tense. All forward-looking information set forth in this press release is expressly qualified in its entirety by the cautionary statements referred to in this section.

In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information pertaining to: the features and location of the proposed Converter, including the costs and benefits thereof; statements regarding future plans, estimates, and schedules relating to the Company's Converter strategy; anticipated production of lithium hydroxide and related processing methods; statements and expectations regarding the electric vehicle industry; Rock Tech's planning, approval and decision-making process, including relevant factors taken into consideration by the Company; Rock Tech's opinions, beliefs and expectations regarding the Company's business strategy, development and exploration opportunities and projects, and plans and objectives of management for the Company's operations and properties.

Forward-looking information contained in this press release is based on certain assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions of the Company and in certain cases, third party experts, that are believed by management of Rock Tech to be reasonable at the time they were made. Such assumptions, estimates and other factors include, among other things: the supply and demand for, deliveries of, and the level and volatility of prices of, feedstock and intermediate and final lithium products, expected growth, performance and business operations, future commodity prices and exchange rates, prospects, growth opportunities and financing available to the Company, general business and economic conditions, results of development and exploration, Rock Tech's ability to procure supplies and other equipment necessary for its business. The foregoing list is not exhaustive of all assumptions which may have been used in developing the forward-looking information. While Rock Tech considers these assumptions, estimates and factors to be reasonable based on information currently available, they may prove to be incorrect. Forward-looking information should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results.

In addition, forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond Rock Tech's control, that may cause Rock Tech's actual events, results, performance and/or achievements to be materially different from that which is expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events, results, performance and/or achievements to vary materially include the Company's ability to access funding required to invest in available opportunities and projects (including the proposed Converter) and on satisfactory terms, the current and potential adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and recent geopolitical hostilities; the risk that Rock Tech will not be able to meet its financial obligations as they fall due, changes in commodity and other prices, Rock Tech's ability to attract and retain skilled staff and to secure feedstock from third party suppliers, unanticipated events and other difficulties related to construction, development and operation of the proposed Converter, the cost of compliance with current and future environmental and other laws and regulations, title defects, competition from existing and new competitors, changes in currency, exchange rates and market prices of Rock Tech's securities, Rock Tech's history of losses, impacts of climate change and other risks and uncertainties described from time to time in Rock Tech's public disclosure documents available on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com, including those discussed under the heading "Financial Instruments and Other Risks" in Rock Tech's most recently filed Management Discussion and Analysis. Such risks and uncertainties do not represent an exhaustive list of all risk factors that could cause actual events, results, performance and/or achievements to vary materially from the forward-looking information.

We cannot assure you that actual events, results, performance and/or achievements will be consistent with the forward-looking information and management's assumptions may prove to be incorrect. Forward-looking information reflects Rock Tech management's views as at the date the information is created. Except as may be required by law, Rock Tech undertakes no obligation and expressly disclaims any responsibility, obligation or undertaking to update or to revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, to reflect any change in Rock Tech's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such information is based.

Given these uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to rely on the forward-looking information set forth in this press release.

SOURCE Rock Tech Lithium Inc.