Cerro de Pasco Resources Inc. subsidiary H2-SPHERE GmbH, formed in December 2021 in collaboration with Prof Dr. Bernhard Dold, has signed an exclusive agreement with the German Aerospace Center (DLR) to jointly develop techniques for converting mining waste into green hydrogen and other byproducts.
DLR will do an investigation (6 months) and then conduct laboratory testing, resulting in a template for industrial-scale manufacturing.
DLR – The World’s Leading Technology Company
DLR is the Federal Republic of Germany’s aeronautics and space research center. It is involved in research and development in the areas of aeronautics, space, energy, transportation, security, and digitalization. DLR develops solutions by using the knowledge of its 55 research institutes and facilities. The organization’s stated objective, which includes 10,000 personnel, is to explore the Earth and space and develop technologies for a sustainable future.
H2-SPHERE research will be carried out by the Institute of Future Fuels’ Solar-Chemical Process Development department, which was recently established by DLR to prioritize the development of chemical storage systems (fuels, i.e. green hydrogen). The CDPR mineral waste resource is very compatible with ongoing research agendas.
Hydrogen that is twice as green
H2-SPHERE and DLR’s core invention will consist of two complementary approaches for transforming environmentally hazardous mining waste into green hydrogen and other commercial byproducts.
CDPR will be able to permanently eliminate extremely polluting components from its mineral waste resource, which are the principal cause of acid mine drainage (AMD). Thus, because CDPR hydrogen achieves the dual effect of eliminating AMD and producing green hydrogen, it may be dubbed “dual-green.”
Guy Goulet, CEO: “The Cerro de Pasco Team is very pleased to engage in this project along with DLR and H2-SPHERE. Prof Dr. Bernhard Dold has been extremely active assisting governments in mine waste management in South America for many years and we believe that the innovations that he and DLR are driving could be a game-changer for our company. Green hydrogen will clearly play a major role in addressing climate change and is likely to become the main fuel for the mining activity in Peru and other places.”
Scalable Industrial Resource
Up to half of CDPR’s Quiulacocha Tailings and Excelsior Stockpile, which total around 180Mt, may be reprocessed utilizing the procedures being developed under the DLR – H2-SPHERE collaboration. Apart from CDPR, the Cerro de Pasco mining cluster provides a variety of additional options. These resources alone offer the possibility of establishing a world-class, sustainable renewable energy industry.
Seize the Wave
The H2-SPHERE program is timed to coincide with the upcoming start of exploratory drilling at CDPR’s El Metalurgista concession, with a particular emphasis on the Quiulacocha Tailings. It also coincides with the first significant global shift toward H2, with significant national initiatives arising in Peru, Chile, and Colombia.
Options and Shares Grant
In connection with the foregoing, CDPR entered into agreements with Prof Dr. Bernhard Dold and Pyers Griffith to grant I an aggregate of 1,040,000 stock options to purchase common shares of CDPR exercisable on or before March 2, 2027, at a price of $0.40 per common share, and an aggregate of 646,654 common shares of CDPR subject to a four-month hold period following their issuance in exchange for services rendered.