Manufacturing news briefs — stories you might have missed

National Reconstruction Fund to hold inaugural meeting

The board of the National Reconstruction Fund will hold its inaugural board meeting in Sydney on Monday afternoon. In attendance will also be Chair Martijn Wilder, as well as Kelly O’Dwyer,  Kathryn Presser, Karen Smith-Pomeroy, Daniel Walton, Daniel Petre. Ahmed Fahour and Dr Katharine Giles will attend virtually. The make-up of the independent board was announced last month. It will make investment decisions for the federal government’s signature manufacturing program, the $15 billion NRF. The NRF Corporation will provide finance through debt and equity to selected companies in seven priority investment areas: Renewables and low emissions technologies; Medical science; Transport; Value-add in the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors; Value-add in resources; Defence capability; and Enabling capabilities.

Wellnex announces revised terms for Pain Away acquisition

ASX-listed healthcare brand Wellnex Life has announced an update on its proposed acquisition of Pain Away, telling shareholders there would be a reduced upfront payment and subsequent reduced dilution for them. The Pain Away completion payment was reduced from $19.8 million to $13.95 million (including  inventory target of $1.15 million), it said, with the parties agreeing to a deferred  consideration of $5.85 million payable in equal installments on the 12 month and 18 months anniversary of the acquisition date. This will be paid from the internal cash generation of the combined business. Wellnex in consideration of the deferred payment will issue 20 million fully paid ordinary shares at $0.05 escrowed until May 2024, and said it was finalising the new agreement to formalise the new transaction  structure. “We anticipate having this formally completed by 22 September 2023  with a sunset date of 16th October 2023,” the company said. Barclay Pearce Capital has been engaged to lead the capital raise under these revised terms.

New appointments on AML3D’s leadership team

The board of metal additive manufacturing company AML3D has announced the appointment of interim CEO Sean Ebert to the role of Managing Director and Pete Goumas as President of US Operations, with immediate effect. In a statement on Monday, AML3D said its board had conducted a four-month review to determine the company’s future leadership structure. Ebert’s “extensive knowledge of AML3D’s operations and strategy makes him ideally suited to executing on AML3D’s growth aspirations” the company said, and Goumas’s  commencement in the newly-created role of President of US Operations would see him leading the execution of “all aspects of AML3D’s US growth strategy, foremost of which includes rapidly growing the company’s position within the US Defense manufacturing sector.” Chair Noel Cornish said, “Sean has many years of experience with AML3D in different roles, including as Chairman between November 2021 and October 2022… Pete’s deep understanding, relationships and experience in executive roles supporting the US Government’s defence industrial initiatives, and notably the US nuclear submarine program, make him ideally suited to lead AML3D’s fast growing US operations that underpin the Company’s growth aspirations.”

BMA signs new five-year renewable power purchase agreement

BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) has entered into a new renewable power purchase agreement (PPA) with Queensland’s publicly-owned energy generator and retailer, CleanCo, which is expected to provide half the forecasted electricity demand of BMA’s Central Queensland operations over five years from January 2026. The PPA will run to the end of 2030, will “effectively extend an existing low carbon emission power agreement between BMA and CleanCo currently running to the end of 2025″, and will enable BMA to “continue to source half of its expected electricity needs from low greenhouse gas emission sources such as solar and wind, as well as pumped hydro.” BHP President Australia, Geraldine Slattery, said: “We expect demand for Queensland’s higher-quality metallurgical coal to remain strong for many years to come, as major steelmakers look to reduce their emissions intensity while delivering the steel needed to support global population growth and decarbonisation infrastructure.”

Element 25 feasibility study accepted by GM

Element 25 has announced that General Motors has completed due diligence and accepted the company’s Feasibility Study as a condition of the definitive agreement announced between the companies on June 26. E25 and GM signed a definitive agreement for supply OF battery-grade high-purity manganese sulphate to support GM’s electric vehicle (EV) battery requirements. In addition, GM will provide E25 with a $US 85 million (about $128 million) loan towards financing the construction of its HPMSM processing facility in the U.S., which will process manganese concentrate from E25’s Butcherbird mine in Western Australia. Element 25 Managing Director Justin Brown said, “GM’s acceptance of the HPMSM Feasibility Study is an important milestone for the project and for our project financing activities for the proposed Louisiana facility. It is a key step in our journey to becoming a key supplier to the battery raw material supply chain servicing US electric vehicle markets.”

Picture: credit AML3D