Magrathea, a technology company that aims to produce magnesium metal from seawater, announced the launch of its next-generation magnesium chloride electrolyzer at its pilot facility in Oakland, California. The new electrolyzer uses electricity to split magnesium salts to make magnesium metal.
This milestone is a crucial step towards advancing the technical and data framework for a future scaled plant. Additionally, if the project succeeds, it will position Magrathea’s technology to provide American companies with access to U.S.-based critical mineral supply chains amid shifting trade policies and export controls.
“Magnesium is one of the most important critical materials, but NATO countries face a dire shortage of non-China supply,” Alex Grant, CEO of Magrathea, said. “Western nations must view this supply crisis as a national security emergency.”
“At our core, Magrathea’s innovative technology revitalizes a proven process with our own twist for considerable efficiency improvement and expense reduction,” said Grant. “We expect to reduce the technology’s operating expenses to make it cost-competitive with existing alternative production methods, including in China. Magrathea is in conversations with several major defense, chemical and mining industrial players to form a strategic partnership to scale up our technology as the first new commercial-scale magnesium electrolyzer in the United States in the past 50 years.”
Over the coming months, Magrathea will use data gathered from the pilot-scale electrolyzer to create a scalable technical model aimed at achieving the highest efficiencies from both environmental and economic perspectives. The company will focus on obtaining process data, minimizing total electricity use, recycling energy strategically and optimizing the dehydration process, offering an opportunity for cost reduction in the electrolytic magnesium metal production process. These technical efforts are expected to significantly reduce the carbon footprint and operating expenditure of future commercial plants. The data and key processing learnings are also expected to help streamline permitting processes for future facilities given the inherent environmental benefits of the technology.
Magrathea’s operational pilot plant in California can now produce 4,000 pounds of magnesium annually at full capacity. However, in partnership with a strategic partner — the company plans to deploy its technology at a scaled facility by 2027 to produce up to 2 million pounds of magnesium per year, enough to support the equivalent production of thousands of Black Hawk helicopters annually.
Magrathea is collaborating with Sedgman Novopro, an engineering firm specializing in mining and mineral processing, to support its scale-up engineering and design program. The company’s technology is backed by the U.S. Department of Defense, Capricorn, VoLo Earth, Exor Ventures, Sam Altman, and leaders at Glencore, Mitra Chem, Tesla, and other investors.
About Magrathea
Magrathea is a technology company based in California that has developed a process for making magnesium metal from seawater and brines to help the West solve its magnesium shortage. Magnesium is essential for a wide range of applications such as stiffening aluminum in alloys, steel making, inputs for nuclear applications, automotive, aerospace, and next-generation defense applications.