04:03 PM EST, 02/20/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Rock Tech Lithium ( RCKTF ) said Thursday it has entered a merger deal with Arcore AG, a Swiss-based mining company.

The merger aims to create a fully integrated lithium supply chain in Europe, reducing the region's reliance on other areas for essential battery materials, the company added.

Rock Tech and Arcore will form a new European company, currently called NewCo. Once the merger is finalized, Rock Tech will contribute its subsidiary, Rock Tech Guben GmbH, to NewCo, holding 75% of the company's shares. Arcore will contribute its subsidiary, AR CORE d.o.o, to NewCo and hold a 25% stake.

The key assets of NewCo will include Rock Tech's fully permitted lithium converter in Guben, Germany, and Arcore's lithium-boron-magnesium mining project in Lopare, Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Lopare project is expected to start producing lithium sulfate, which will be delivered to the Guben converter from 2030 onwards.

The merger is set to close in the second quarter, Rock Tech Lithium ( RCKTF ) said.

The company's shares closed unchanged at $1.04 on the TSX Venture Exchange.