Tanaka Kikinzoku Starts PGM Recycle Plant in Chiba

Tanaka Holdings announced on Thursday the group company Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo starts operation of Sodegaura plant in Chiba on January 5. Sodegaura plant collects and recycles platinum, palladium and rhodium from used automotive exhaust purification catalysts. Capex was 6.5 billion yen. Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo will operate two automotive exhaust purification catalysts recycling plant, existent Ichikawa plant in Chiba and Sodegaura plant. The firm to strengthen BCP (business continuity plan) in emergencies.

Among platinum group metals, 30% of global rhodium supply is covered by recycle of automotive catalysts. Global rhodium demand is 27.1 tonnes per year, of which 22.5 tonnes is used for automotive catalysts.

Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo estimates world’s used automotive catalysts supply at 2,700 tonnes per month and the volume would reach 3,700 tonnes in 2014. Tanaka Kikinzoku Group has collected used automotive catalysts mainly in Europe, the U.S.A. and Asia. The Group eyes potential new platinum group metals recycling lines depending on scrap collection volume.