A new £41million plant capable of recycling 25,000 tonnes of copper-bearing waste a year has opened.

Lead producer, Britannia Refined Metals (BRM) says it’s created the new sampling and preparation facility in Northfleet to close the gap left since the country’s last such refinery shut more than a quarter of a century ago.

It was officially opened on Friday (October 17) by Mayor of Gravesham, Jenny Wallace together with Florian von Steinkeller, the company’s general manager.

Cllr Wallace said she was “absolutely thrilled” to attend and praised the investment for supporting the local economy.

She added: “It’s a whole recycling project, but it’s also about investment and local jobs.

“It has already created employment, but there’s going to be more, which is so important.

“It’s putting Gravesham on the map yet again.

“We have so much heritage and industry here, and this kind of growth is exactly what we need.”

The BRM site can handle up to 25,000 tonnes of copper-bearing waste each year - much of it recovered from recycled appliances, including fridges and microwaves.

The process involves inspecting, shredding and heating the material in furnaces before converting it into copper matte, an intermediate product later tested in laboratories to determine metal content and quality.

Paul Odendaal, development engineer for BRM, said: “There is a lot of value in urban waste.

“It’s crucial for us to recycle materials and feed them back into the metal stream.

“By doing this, we’re able to recover valuable metals and support a closed-loop economy.”

BRM is part of Glencore, one of the world’s largest natural resource groups, operating more than 60 commodity businesses across 30 countries and employs over 150,000 people.

Marc Bedard, Glencore’s head of zinc and metallurgical assets, said the investment demonstrates the group’s commitment to sustainable metal production and to the circular economy.

The investment will create about 20 new jobs in technical and operational roles, adding to the firm’s existing 150-strong workforce in Kent.

BRM, which has operated in the area since 1930, runs one of Europe’s leading lead-production plants, processing around 160,000 tonnes each year for use in batteries and high-voltage cables.

It also produces up to 350 tonnes of LBMA-certified silver annually.

Glencore markets and produces commodities worldwide and supports the goals of the Paris Agreement through its Climate Action Transition Plan.