Creative Recycling Forms Joint Venture to Recover, Recycle Rare Earth Metals

Creative Recycling Systems Inc. (CRS), based in Tampa, Fla., has entered into a joint venture to form GreenRock Rare Earth Recovery Corp. The goal of the new company is to recover and recycle rare earth elements found in consumer electronics, magnets, phosphors and industrial batteries.

Over the past year, greater attention has focused on the growing demand for rare earth metals. At the same time, an overwhelming percentage of all the rare earth metals mined come from China. In a release announcing the JV, CRS notes that demand for rare earth elements will soon exceed total production, causing a potential global shortage in the supply of the elements.

Under the JV, GreenRock will use CRS’s processing and separation technology, along with its collection network, to capture rare earth elements from components found in obsolete and end-of-life electronics. CRS’ experience and expertise in the recycling and material separation of consumer electronics is central to the recent joint venture.

By the end of 2011, CRS expects to have four processing facilities with the capacity to process 500 million pounds of electronics per year.

“The dwindling supply of rare earth elements is an issue of the utmost importance,” says Jon Yob, CEO and president of CRS. “We are uniquely positioned to capture and facilitate the recycling of these finite elements in a truly closed loop process.”