EVelution Energy LLC (“EVelution Energy”), a U.S. critical minerals company developing the first solar-powered commercial-scale cobalt sulfate and cobalt metal processing facility in the United States, is pleased to announce that Finnvera plc (“Finnvera”), the official Export Credit Agency of Finland, has issued a non-binding Letter of Interest (“LOI”) indicating its willingness to support up to approximately US$70 million in export credit financing and/or guarantees associated with the procurement of Finnish equipment and services for EVelution Energy’s processing facility currently under development in Yuma County, Arizona.
The proposed financing support relates primarily to equipment and process technology expected to be supplied by Metso Oyj (“Metso”), the Finland-based global leader in sustainable technologies and equipment for the mining and metals industries.
The Finnvera LOI represents another important milestone in EVelution Energy’s broader sovereign and export credit agency (“ECA”) financing strategy, following the Company’s previously announced non-binding Letter of Interest from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (“EXIM”) for up to US$200 million under EXIM’s Make More in America initiative (“MMIA”).
Together, the EXIM and Finnvera financing initiatives form part of a broader allied-nation financing framework designed to support the development of secure, resilient and non-FEOC critical minerals processing infrastructure in the United States and strengthen strategic industrial cooperation among allied economies.
“We are very pleased to receive this indication of support from Finnvera,” said Gil Michel-Garcia, Executive Vice-President and General Counsel of EVelution Energy. “This LOI represents another important step in the progressive de-risking of our project and reflects growing institutional confidence in the strategic importance of establishing domestic critical minerals processing capacity in the United States. The participation of leading allied export credit institutions alongside globally recognized industrial partners demonstrates the increasing alignment between sovereign industrial policy and the urgent need to build resilient non-FEOC supply chains for critical minerals in the United States.”
The proposed Finnvera-supported financing is expected to support the procurement of key hydrometallurgical processing equipment and associated engineering services from Metso for EVelution Energy’s Arizona refining facility.
Metso is expected to serve as one of the principal equipment and technology suppliers for the project, including the supply of process equipment associated with the facility’s cobalt refining circuits.
Finnvera is Finland’s official export credit agency and is mandated to support Finnish exports and international industrial cooperation through export credit guarantees and financing solutions.
The Yuma County facility is being designed to become the first solar-powered commercial-scale cobalt sulfate and cobalt metal processing facility in the United States. When fully operational, the facility is expected to produce up to approximately 7,000 metric tons per year of refined cobalt products (contained cobalt basis), including battery-grade cobalt sulfate for EV batteries and alloy-grade cobalt metal for aerospace, defense and advanced manufacturing applications.
More than 75% of the world’s refined cobalt is currently processed in China, while the United States presently lacks commercial-scale domestic cobalt refining infrastructure. EVelution Energy’s project is intended to help address this strategic vulnerability by establishing secure domestic refining capacity aligned with U.S. industrial policy, supply chain resilience and national security priorities.
The project has progressively advanced multiple key development milestones over the last several years, including permitting approvals in Yuma County, strategic feedstock and commercial arrangements with major global commodity producers and trading partners, long-term commercial agreements with Mitsui & Co., sovereign financing engagement with EXIM, and strategic supply chain cooperation initiatives involving Trafigura and Entreprise Générale du Cobalt (“EGC”) of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Construction of the facility is currently expected to commence in early 2027, with commercial operations targeted for 2029.
Located in a federally designated rural qualified opportunity zone in Yuma County, Arizona, the facility is designed to generate its own solar power, recycle approximately 70% of its process water, and operate without on-site tailings storage or disposal. The project is expected to generate substantial economic benefits for the region, including thousands of direct, indirect and induced jobs over the life of the project.
The Finnvera Letter of Interest is non-binding and remains subject to additional due diligence, final underwriting review, satisfaction of applicable export credit agency requirements, definitive documentation, board approvals and other customary conditions.
This Press Release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction.
ABOUT EVELUTION ENERGY
EVelution Energy LLC is developing the first solar-powered commercial-scale cobalt sulfate and cobalt metal processing facility in the United States, designed to establish secure and resilient domestic refining capacity for the U.S. aerospace, defense, electric vehicle battery and advanced manufacturing sectors.
The facility will be constructed in a rural qualified opportunity zone in Yuma County, Arizona. The Opportunity Zone Program, originally established under the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and subsequently made permanent under federal law, provides long-term tax certainty and enhanced incentives for investors supporting strategic domestic manufacturing and community revitalization.
EVelution Energy’s leadership team brings extensive experience in international infrastructure development, capital markets structuring, and strategic project execution, with a focus on building a resilient U.S. critical minerals platform.
Learn more at www.evelutionenergy.com.
U.S. “accredited investors” interested in investing in this project (Minimum Investment US$200,000) and benefiting from the substantial long-term tax advantages available under the now-permanent Opportunity Zone Program, can learn more at https://investors.evelutionenergy.com.
Foreign “accredited investors” interested in investing in this project (Minimum Investment US$800,000) and obtaining U.S. permanent residency (a “green” card) in an expedited manner under the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, can learn more at http://www.intermesticeb5.com.
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts and EVelution Energy has based these statements on management’s current expectations and assumptions. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, and a number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. These factors include, but are not limited to, (i) regulatory or policy changes affecting advanced manufacturing, defense procurement, or federal critical minerals initiatives and/or funding available to the Export-Import Bank under the Make More in America initiative, (ii) potential construction delays, supply chain issues, governmental approvals and regulatory, environmental or other issues encountered in connection with the development and construction of the facility, (iii) growth in U.S. demand for defense, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing applications utilizing refined cobalt products, (iv) capital and credit market volatility, (v) local and global economic conditions, (vi) changes within USCIS relating to projects that qualify for priority treatment, and (vii) our future business development, results of operations and financial condition. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “target,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “potential,” “continue,” “is/are likely to” or other similar expressions. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and EVelution Energy undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.”
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