Speaking at Masan High-Tech Materials' 2023 AGM on April 18, Craig Richard Bradshaw, CEO, said, “Masan High-Tech Materials had a year of challenges, overcoming market fluctuations and various impacts in the region and the world. Even still, tungsten revenue and scrap recycling rates were significantly higher than before, contributing to delivering record revenue for the year.”

Midstream products such as tungsten carbides and powders produced by H.C. Starck, a German subsidiary of MHT, accounted for 70 per cent of last year's growth. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation increased by 5 per cent, reaching VND3.2 trillion ($136 million).

As a result of drilling undertaken at Nui Phao throughout 2020 and 2021, MHT was able to increase ore reserves significantly. By November 2022, there were over 44 million tonnes of ore still to be mined and processed at the location, giving an indicative mine life of at least another 12 years.

Last year, MHT established a global innovation hub based on two research and development centres in Goslar, Germany and Thai Nguyen, Vietnam. MHT will continue to invest in innovation and process improvement to maintain its long-term growth trajectory. The company has developed innovative processes, breakthrough solutions, and eco-friendly products to meet the global market’s unmet needs, earning 95 new patents worldwide and 50 patents that are still in the application stage.

With extensive experience and potential in supplying high-tech materials, as well as ongoing research to evaluate the needs of critical industries, MHT believes that tungsten is the key to the future of innovation in industry.

MHT executed definitive agreements last year to invest VND1.3 trillion ($55.7 million) in Nyobolt Limited, a United Kingdom-based Lithium-ion fast-charging battery solutions company, to promote the application of tungsten in the development and manufacturing of high-performance batteries.

Following last year's achievements, H.C. Starck officially launched new advanced tungsten powders in February to be used specifically in manufacturing safe and fast-charging Li-ion batteries. This type of battery is expected to help establish a comprehensive clean energy ecosystem, playing an important role in electric vehicles.

In March, H.C. Starck launched further special tungsten powders and complementary innovation services for 3D printing with greater chemical purity and stability, with significance for the medical and pharmaceutical industries.

MHT is working to increase the proportion of its production coming from secondary sources, i.e. recycling, maintaining the company’s 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle' policy.

This year, the company is focusing on developing a fully integrated circular economy model with a closed value chain that encompasses waste and scrap collection, processing, recycling of scraps, and raw material recovery. Tungsten will be recovered from used batteries and industrial waste, then recycled to be used as feed materials for new product development.

The company plans to implement the first-ever tungsten recycling plant project in Vietnam, serving the region. The goal is to make Vietnam the top tungsten and critical metals recycling technology development centre in Asia.

The success of the project will demonstrate MHT's commitment to provide the Vietnamese workforce opportunities to enhance the country’s competitiveness in the global tungsten market.

The company expects net revenue in 2023 of VND16.5 trillion ($702 million) to VND18.2 trillion ($775 million).