RecycLiCo Battery Materials Inc. (AMY.V) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Welcome to company showcase an advertising feature on howestreet.com. I'm Jim Goddard. My guest is Zarko Meseldzija. He's the Chief Executive Officer of RecycLiCo. Welcome back to Company Showcase.

Thanks for having me, Jim.

What's the latest at RecycLiCo?

Well, on October 31, we held our AGM at our office, and we had a good in-person turnout, and I'll be able to put some faces to the name. Shareholders voted their proxy before the meeting and our lawyer along with our transfer agent reported to votes. The voting did go in favor for the appointment of our auditor, incentive plan, and most importantly, a change of business from a mining issuer to an industrial technology or life science issuer, especially now that we are called the RecycLiCo Battery Materials. There was a recommendation earlier before the AGM to the Board for a new director, and we proposed to increase the number of directors to 6, but that was voted against at the AGM. However, thinking about it, I do agree that having an odd number of directors avoids any potential dead blocks in voting. Before the AGM, Edward Skoda step down, and Shaheem Ali, who was also our CFO -- who is also our CFO, decided to step down as director to make room for the recommended person. I've been getting -- and I just want to make this clear because I've been getting lots of questions about this. But Shaheem Ali will remain as the CFO of the company. Shaheem is a valuable part of the team, and I don't see the shift having any impact on day-to-day operations. With that said, we're excited to welcome Richard Sadowsky and Rod Langtry to our Board, bringing with them a wealth of business expertise and fresh insights to help guide our future direction. But I also want to just address the obvious. Our stock price has seen better days, and understandably, our shareholders are eager for a turnaround. In response, our rejuvenated Board is engaging in comprehensive discussions to chart a strategic path forward and our focused areas include a number of things, one being our existing project pipeline. So evaluating our current projects, prioritizing the top joint venture prospects for optimal growth, looking at capital market engagement, so enhancing our communications with the capital markets to ensure company's mission and value propositions are clearly understood by investors. Innovation leadership. So continuing our commitment to an innovation-driven approach to keep us at the forefront of the industry. We're looking at government funding, so actively seeking government funding opportunities to support our continuous innovation and scaling efforts. In terms of our -- also looking at financial health, so maintaining our commitment to strategic investments and prudent financial management to sustain and grow. Exploring new markets and opportunities to broaden our impact and footprint, looking at team development, so focusing on empowering and equipping our team to meet future challenges with confidence. And of course, embracing adaptability, so enabling us to simply respond to market shifts and emerging trends, as especially in this market, we're constantly seeing these shifts and we have to be adaptable. But our collective efforts are aimed, and not just stabilizing, but elevating our company's performance and delivering value to our shareholders and ensuring long-term success. So I am confident in what is ahead. However, we're not just strategizing a better future. We're also going to be actively shaping it. And our first joint venture in Taiwan is a prime example of this, serving as a future full-scale, commercial demonstration of our technology, and that work is underway on multiple fronts, those being the joint venture setup. So our JV partner, Zenith, has successfully incorporated JV entity, which is a significant milestone and investment corporation is in Taiwan. The next steps are going to include numerous business formalities, so including the tax registration, which is already approved. Currently, the JV is also navigating import/export registration and factory registration with the relevant authorities and just laying the groundwork for operational efficiency. On the other front, technical documentation and P&ID development, that's on the technical front. We're working on that comprehensive step-by-step documentation of our process, the documentation. So this documentation is going to be transformed into P&ID, and that P&ID not just a diagram. It's an essential tool that outlines the intricacies of our plant process flow, including piping, valves, instruments and process equipment. It's also critical for planning, maintenance, safety, compliance and training personnel on the operation of the plant. On another front, well, we have collaboration with our suppliers and engineers. So armed with the detailed documentation, we're going to be -- we're collaborating closely with equipment suppliers and engineers. Our focus is on constructing modular units locally. So this approach doesn't just offer us greater control over the construction process. It also enables us to oversee the quality and efficiency of the build. And then our module -- the module construction strategy is key also to our agility. So unlike a traditional project -- unlike in a traditional project, the way they approach is, it requires a complete site preparation before any construction can begin. Whereas our modular units allow construction to occur simultaneously with site preparation. Now this parallel progression means quicker deployment and faster commissioning once the units are transported to the Taiwan plant location. And the modular approach is not going to just about speed, it's about adaptability and scalability with modular units. So with modular units, we can rapidly respond to changing market demands and scale our operations efficiency. This strategy is a game changer, reducing both time to market and operational costs, giving us a significant competitive advantage. Lastly, I'm excited to share that next week, I'll be attending the Benchmark Minerals Intelligence event. This is a significant gathering in our industry known for its excellent turnout on discussions. At the event, we'll be engaging a series of meetings that are linked to our company's growth and direction. This includes connecting with industry -- with leaders in the industry. I'll be meeting with battery and EV companies to discuss potential collaborations and stay up to be on the latest trends, collaboration with our peers as well. So my schedule also involves discussion with fellow battery recycling companies by sharing industry insights and exploring potential partnerships. I will also be speaking with reporters to share our company's vision, achievements, and perspectives on the future of battery recycling. And last I'll be meeting with finance groups, who are also on the agenda to explore financial strategies to align with our company's objectives. Now I think the benchmark event is always an opportunity for us to build partnerships, strengthen existing ones, and stay tuned to the pulse of the industry. So yes, I look forward to representing our company and bringing back valuable insights and connections, and that will drive our mission forward. So, yes, please stay tuned for updates.

Zarko, for people new to RecycLiCo. What's the company all about?

RecycLiCo is a battery materials company focused on lithium-ion battery recycling and upcycling, taking battery waste and upcycling it to a battery-grade product, which is a cathode precursor and lithium chemical that can go back into new battery production and use.

Where are you traded?

We're traded on the TSXV under the ticker symbol AMY. On the OTCQB on AMYZF. And the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under 2AM. And you can find more information on that at www.recyclico.com.

Zarko, thank you so much for the update.

Thanks, Jim.

My guest has been Zarko Meseldzija, the Chief Executive Officer of RecycLiCo. I'm Jim Goddard. Our conversation took place on November 10. Comments made on company showcase are an expression of opinion only, and should not be construed in any manner whatsoever as recommendations to buy or sell any financial instrument at any time, archived online at howestreet.com. Company Showcase is a production of Howe Street Media Inc.