September 27, 2023: The lead battery industry is worth $2.3 billion annually to the US state of Missouri, according to a new report released by the Doe Run Company on September 26.
The lead mining and recycling firm itself contributes $715 million of that sum says the report* — ‘Economic Contribution of the Missouri Lead Battery Industry in 2021’.
Additionally, Doe Run paid $9.9 million in royalties to the federal government, 25% of which is returned to the state of Missouri, says the report compiled by EBP US.
Missouri is home to three lead battery manufacturing plants, two lead battery recycling facilities, including Doe Run’s plant in Boss and the company’s six underground mines and four mills.
The report reveals Missouri’s lead battery industry directly employed 4,110 workers and spent $293.7 million in annual payroll.
When combined with supplier and related jobs, the impact state-wide amounts to a total of 8,550 jobs with $71,500 in average annual wages per worker.
Of those totals, the state-wide impact of Doe Run is a total of 1,080 direct jobs, 2,620 combined direct and indirect jobs and $96,300 in average annual wages per worker.
Nationwide, the report said the lead battery industry annually contributes nearly $33 billion to the US economy and supports 38,000 direct jobs across 38 states.
Doe Run president and CEO Matthew Wohl said the prevalence of the mineral form of lead in Missouri meant it was natural that the state’s lead battery industry was among the top in the US.
And the company’s other mineral and metal recycling resources including zinc, copper, cobalt, nickel, tin and antimony are all critical to the clean energy revolution taking place worldwide, Wohl said.
“These resources, combined with the Missouri governor’s focus on workforce development, Missouri’s strong manufacturing base, and the research and academic center of excellence at Missouri University of Science and Technology, make Missouri uniquely poised to take a leadership role in the US battery energy storage market and help deliver on clean energy sources.”
Doe Run annually recycles about 370 million pounds of lead-bearing materials including around 8.5 million recycled lead batteries.
The company’s lead recycling business provided about 12% of the US domestic supply of lead for the battery manufacturing industry.
About 30% of the US lead supply is imported. As the country no longer produces lead metal from mining, Doe Run exports all of its annual lead concentrate production of around 170,000 tons for conversion to lead metal.
The company says much of this metal finds its way back into the US market either as ingots or as finished lead batteries for the US market.
*Click here to read the full report
Photo: Doe Run