EVelution Energy LLC (“EVelution Energy” or the “Company”), a U.S. critical minerals company developing America’s first commercial-scale, solar-powered cobalt sulfate and cobalt metal processing facility, today announced that the Export-Import Bank of the United States (“EXIM”) has re-issued its non-binding Letter of Interest (“LOI”), increasing proposed financing support for the Company’s Arizona cobalt processing facility from up to US$200 million to up to US$275 million under EXIM’s Make More in America (“MMIA”) initiative.

The re-issued Letter of Interest represents a 37.5% increase in EXIM’s previously proposed financing support and, if ultimately approved following completion of EXIM’s due diligence and credit approval process, would finance more than 60% of the estimated construction cost of EVelution Energy’s planned US$450 million cobalt processing facility in Yuma County, Arizona.

The increase follows the Company’s systematic advancement across engineering, permitting, commercial development, strategic partnerships and project financing since EXIM first issued its original Letter of Interest. Collectively, these milestones have materially strengthened the project’s bankability by reducing development risk, enhancing its commercial and technical profile and reinforcing its ability to attract both institutional debt and private capital.

The EXIM Letter of Interest remains non-binding. Any final commitment would be subject to EXIM’s due diligence, underwriting criteria, authorization process, applicable program, legal and eligibility requirements, definitive documentation and satisfaction of applicable terms and conditions.

Strengthening America’s Domestic Critical Minerals Supply Chain

The proposed increase in EXIM’s financing support represents another important milestone in the development of America’s domestic critical minerals processing capability.

Today, more than 75% of global refined cobalt production is controlled by China, while the United States presently has no commercial-scale cobalt refining capacity despite cobalt’s importance to aerospace, defense, electric vehicle batteries, semiconductors and numerous advanced manufacturing applications.

EVelution Energy’s Arizona facility is intended to address this strategic vulnerability by establishing secure domestic refining capacity capable of producing battery-grade cobalt sulfate for North American electric vehicle manufacturers and alloy-grade cobalt metal for U.S. aerospace, defense and advanced industrial applications.

When fully operational, the facility is expected to produce approximately 7,000 metric tons of contained cobalt annually, including approximately 4,000 metric tons of contained cobalt as battery-grade cobalt sulfate and approximately 3,000 metric tons of alloy-grade cobalt metal, representing up to approximately 40% of projected U.S. cobalt demand.

The increase also reflects the growing role of sovereign-backed financing institutions in supporting strategically important domestic industrial capacity that may not otherwise be developed at the pace required to strengthen U.S. supply-chain resilience.

Building a More Bankable Critical Minerals Project

Large-scale industrial projects are financed through the progressive reduction of development risk.

As engineering advances, permitting milestones are achieved, long-term commercial arrangements are executed and technical uncertainties are resolved, projects become increasingly capable of supporting long-term institutional project finance.

Since EXIM first issued its original Letter of Interest, EVelution Energy has continued executing a deliberate strategy of systematically strengthening the project’s commercial, technical and financial foundation.

Among other milestones, the Company has:

  • Executed a binding five-year commercial offtake agreement with Mitsui & Co., valued at approximately $850 million based on current market prices, for a substantial majority of the facility’s planned alloy-grade cobalt metal production.
  • Established strategic cobalt feedstock supply frameworks with Trafigura, Entreprise Générale du Cobalt and Eurasian Resources Group.
  • Received a Letter of Interest from Finland’s export credit agency, Finnvera, indicating potential financing support of up to US$70 million.
  • Commenced construction of the project’s 28 MW solar energy facility.
  • Confirmed substantial groundwater resources sufficient to support the planned facility.
  • Received Arizona’s nomination of the project for successor designation as a Rural Opportunity Zone under Opportunity Zone 2.0.
  • Continued advancing engineering activities supporting completion of the Company’s Bankable Feasibility Study.

Collectively, these milestones have progressively strengthened the project’s commercial profile, reduced execution risk and enhanced the overall financing framework supporting development of the facility.

Supporting America’s Industrial Strategy

The increase in proposed financing support reflects EXIM’s continued implementation of the Make More in America initiative, which is intended to expand domestic manufacturing capacity, strengthen strategic supply chains and support the reindustrialization of critical sectors of the American economy.

Critical minerals processing has emerged as an increasingly important component of that national industrial strategy as the United States seeks to establish resilient domestic supply chains for materials essential to defense systems, aerospace platforms, electric vehicles, energy storage technologies and advanced manufacturing.

By supporting projects intended to establish domestic processing capacity, EXIM is helping expand the financing tools available for strategically significant industrial infrastructure within the United States.

“America cannot build resilient critical minerals supply chains without building domestic processing capacity,” said Navaid Alam, President & CEO of EVelution Energy. “The decision by EXIM to increase its proposed financing support from US$200 million to US$275 million represents another significant milestone in that effort and, in our view, a meaningful vote of confidence in the substantial progress our team has made over the past eighteen months. Every commercial agreement, engineering milestone, permitting approval and financing achievement has moved us closer to building America’s first commercial-scale cobalt processing facility. We appreciate EXIM’s continued engagement and look forward to advancing the project to commencement of construction.”

Establishing a Diversified Sovereign Financing Platform

Including the re-issued EXIM Letter of Interest and the previously announced Letter of Interest issued by Finnvera, EVelution Energy has now received indications of potential sovereign export credit support totaling up to approximately US$345 million.

Taken together, these sovereign financing initiatives are expected to provide the foundation of the project’s senior construction financing while reinforcing the strategic importance of the facility to allied industrial policy.

These initiatives form part of the Company’s broader financing strategy, which combines sovereign-backed export credit financing, Qualified Opportunity Zone equity, EB-5 subordinated debt financing, institutional equity and potential strategic investments from commercial counterparties to support construction of the Arizona facility.

Construction of the Company’s cobalt processing facility is expected to commence in 2027 following completion of the Bankable Feasibility Study and project financing, with commercial operations targeted for 2029.

The re-issued EXIM Letter of Interest represents another important step toward financing and constructing what is expected to become America’s first commercial-scale cobalt processing facility.

Need an interview or further information? Please contact EVelution Energy’s Press Office at: media@evelutionenergy.com

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 processing 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 benefitting 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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