Johnson Matthey’s Circular Economy Playbook: How PGM Recycling is Dominating Hydrogen Markets in 2025
Industry Adoption: Johnson Matthey’s Pivot from Component Supplier to Circular Economy Architect
Between 2021 and 2024, Johnson Matthey (JM) solidified its role as a cornerstone of the circular economy, leveraging its status as the world’s largest recycler of Platinum Group Metals (PGMs). The strategy was clear: embed circularity into its core business by supplying PGM-based products while developing the means to recover those critical materials. This period was marked by foundational moves to expand its recycling expertise into emerging clean energy sectors, exemplified by the lab-scale demonstration of its HyRefine™ technology for fuel cell recycling in 2023 and the launch of its first fuel cell recycling contract in China in 2022. Partnerships with companies like Plug Power and Enapter signaled an intent to create closed-loop systems for the nascent hydrogen economy. Simultaneously, JM advanced its waste-to-value capabilities through technologies like FT CANS™, which converts municipal waste into Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), and licensed its processes to partners like CropEnergies for creating renewable chemicals.
The year 2025 marked a dramatic inflection point, shifting the company from a diversified manufacturer to a sharply focused circular economy powerhouse. The landmark decision to sell its Catalyst Technologies business to Honeywell for £1.8 billion was not a retreat but a strategic masterstroke, freeing up immense capital to double down on its most defensible and high-growth markets: PGM services and sustainable technologies. This renewed focus is already yielding results. In May 2025, JM announced a breakthrough with the University of Leicester—a novel ultrasound technique that recovers 92% of platinum from fuel cells, a significant leap from lab-scale demos. Furthermore, the company moved from one-off technology licensing to building entire ecosystems, forming a powerful SAF production alliance with Honeywell, Gidara Energy, and Samsung E&A. This variety of applications—from refining precious metals with a 98% lower carbon footprint to enabling waste-to-jet-fuel value chains—shows that broader market adoption is no longer about individual components but about integrated, circular systems. The opportunity has moved from selling catalysts to architecting the secure, sustainable supply chains that underpin the entire energy transition.
Table: Johnson Matthey’s Strategic Investments and Capital Realignment
| Partner / Project | Time Frame | Details and Strategic Purpose | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sale of Catalyst Technologies Business | May 21, 2025 | Agreed to sell the business to Honeywell for £1.8 billion (€2.15 billion). The divestment sharpens JM’s focus on PGM services and sustainable technologies, providing significant capital for strategic reinvestment in core circular economy growth areas. | Johnson Matthey Full Year Results |
| Sale of Medical Device Components (MDC) Business | March 25, 2024 | Sold its MDC business to Montagu Private Equity for $700 million. This divestment aligns with the strategy of concentrating capital on core growth businesses like PGM services and circular catalyst technologies. | Johnson Matthey to Sell its Medical Device Components … |
| Hydrogen Investment in China | July 12, 2023 | Signed an investment agreement in the Jiading District, Shanghai, to expand capabilities in China’s hydrogen market, complementing its fuel cell recycling operations to create a local circular economy for PGMs. | Johnson Matthey signs agreement for hydrogen investment … |
| UK Hydrogen Gigafactory | July 20, 2022 | Announced an £80 million investment in a gigafactory in Royston, UK, to scale up the production of hydrogen fuel cell components, creating the products that will feed its future PGM recycling and circularity model. | Johnson Matthey announces UK investment … |
| Investment in Enapter | May 25, 2022 | Invested €20 million in AEM electrolyzer manufacturer Enapter as part of a strategic partnership to accelerate green hydrogen production, securing a role in a key technology for the hydrogen circular economy. | Enapter enters strategic partnership with Johnson Matthey … |
| Stake by Standard Industries | May 3, 2022 | Investment firm Standard Industries acquired a 5.23% stake, a vote of confidence in JM’s strategy focused on sustainable technologies and the circular economy. | Standard Industries Takes Stake in Johnson Matthey |
Table: Johnson Matthey’s Circular Economy Partnership Ecosystem
| Partner / Project | Time Frame | Details and Strategic Purpose | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Leeds | October 28, 2025 | Research partnership to develop low-energy electrochemical processes to recover and recycle PGMs from complex catalyst waste, directly addressing industrial circularity challenges. | Recovery and Recycling of Platinum Group Metals from … |
| Honeywell, Gidara Energy, & Samsung E&A | June 5, 2025 | Formed a strategic alliance to provide an end-to-end solution for producing Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) from waste, with JM providing its critical Fischer-Tropsch (FT) technology. | Honeywell, Johnson Matthey, Gidara Energy And … |
| University of Leicester | May 2, 2025 | Collaborated on research that developed a new ultrasound technique to sustainably recover precious catalysts from fuel cell membranes, turning “forever chemical” waste into a renewable resource. | Breakthrough in fuel cell recycling turns ‘forever chemicals’ … |
| Reolum | January 21, 2025 | JM’s e-methanol technology was selected for a large-scale plant in Spain, marking its 5th win towards a goal of 20 sustainable technology project wins by FY 2025/26. | JM and Reolum partnership | Johnson Matthey |
| Carbon Recycling International (CRI) | May 29, 2024 | Exclusive agreement to supply KATALCO™ catalysts for CRI’s process that converts CO2 emissions into sustainable methanol, advancing the circular carbon economy. | CRI and JM Collaborate to Support Sustainable Methanol |
| Plug Power | January 31, 2023 | Long-term strategic partnership to supply MEA components for fuel cells and electrolyzers, crucially including provisions for a closed-loop recycling solution for the scarce PGMs. | Johnson Matthey and Plug Power agree long-term … |
| Stena Recycling & European Metal Recycling | May 3, 2022 | Partnership to develop an efficient value chain for recycling lithium-ion batteries, extending JM’s circular economy expertise beyond PGMs into battery materials. | GS SUSTAIN The evolution towards a Circular Economy |
| CropEnergies AG | January 12, 2022 | Licensed technology to produce renewable ethyl acetate from sustainable ethanol, promoting a bio-based circular economy by reducing reliance on fossil feedstocks. | CropEnergies AG unveils plans to produce renewable … |
Geography: Johnson Matthey’s Globalizing Circular Economy Footprint
Between 2021 and 2024, Johnson Matthey’s circular economy activities were geographically concentrated in Europe, with a strategic foray into Asia. The UK served as a central hub for technology development and scaling, home to the £80 million Royston gigafactory for hydrogen components and key collaborations like the Flue2Chem and HyNet North West projects. Germany emerged as another key European node through the €20 million investment in electrolyzer-maker Enapter and the renewable chemicals project with CropEnergies. The most significant expansion was into China, where JM established fuel cell recycling operations in Zhangjiagang in 2022, a critical move to create a circular PGM supply chain within the world’s largest and fastest-growing hydrogen vehicle market.
From 2025, this strategy evolved from establishing regional hubs to deploying its technology in major international projects. The commercial pipeline is now distinctly global. Its e-methanol technology was selected by Reolum for a flagship project in Spain, and its biomethanol technology was chosen by SunGas Renewables for a new plant in the US. The SAF alliance with Honeywell, Gidara, and Samsung E&A is inherently global, designed to deliver end-to-end projects worldwide. This geographic spread indicates that JM’s circular economy model is now moving from a Europe-centric development phase to a global commercialization and revenue-generating stage, targeting the largest energy and industrial markets.
Technology Maturity: Johnson Matthey’s Journey from Lab to Commercial Scale
The 2021-2024 period was characterized by the scaling of commercially ready technologies while nurturing next-generation innovations. PGM recycling was already a mature, scaled business, but JM focused on expanding its application. Its LCH™ technology for low-carbon hydrogen moved into large-scale deployment with the HyNet project. In parallel, the company advanced its FT CANS™ technology for waste-to-SAF, moving it toward commercial readiness. The most crucial development for future growth was the successful lab-scale demonstration of HyRefine™ in late 2023, proving the technical feasibility of recycling critical materials from hydrogen fuel cells and electrolyzers and moving it from a concept to a tangible process.
The period from 2025 to today has been about commercial validation and strategic acceleration. The HyRefine™ concept made a significant leap toward commercialization with the University of Leicester collaboration, which developed an ultrasound-based process achieving a 92% platinum recovery rate—a proprietary method that could become an industry standard. This is no longer a lab experiment; it is a scalable, cost-effective solution. The formation of the SAF alliance validates that JM’s Fischer-Tropsch technology is now a commercially bankable component ready for integration into large-scale, multi-billion-dollar waste-to-fuel projects. The shift is clear: JM has moved from demonstrating technological capability to deploying it as the linchpin in complex, revenue-generating ecosystems, solidifying its position as a mature technology provider for the circular economy.
Table: SWOT Analysis of Johnson Matthey’s Circular Economy Strategy
| SWOT Category | 2021 – 2023 | 2024 – 2025 | What Changed / Resolved / Validated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strengths | Dominant position as the world’s largest PGM recycler; integrated circular model; strategic partnerships like the one with Plug Power to create closed-loop systems for the hydrogen economy. | PGM recycling business generated £92 million in operating profit with a 13.8% margin; developed a novel ultrasound tech recovering 92% of platinum from fuel cells; secured a £1.8 billion war chest from the Catalyst Technologies divestment. | The strength evolved from market leadership to proven technological superiority and financial fortitude. The profitability of the PGM Services segment and the breakthrough in fuel cell recycling validated the economic and technical viability of its focused strategy. |
| Weaknesses | A broad portfolio risked diluting focus and capital away from core circular economy strengths; financial pressures noted in market commentary; reliance on partners to scale new technologies. | Execution risk on the ambitious target of securing 20 sustainable technology project wins by FY 2025/26; dependence on partners like Honeywell and Samsung for the success of large, integrated projects like SAF plants. | The weakness of a diffuse portfolio was decisively resolved through the major divestment. The new weakness is a concentrated execution risk on highly ambitious, albeit more focused, strategic goals. Success is now tied to a smaller number of large-scale bets. |
| Opportunities | Expansion into the growing hydrogen economy via the Plug Power deal; entry into the battery recycling value chain with Stena and EMR; creating new revenue streams from waste-to-chemicals (CropEnergies). | Deploying the £1.8 billion from divestment to accelerate growth in core circular markets; dominating the emerging waste-to-SAF market via the new alliance; commercializing the proprietary ultrasound recycling technology. | Opportunities have become more focused and orders of magnitude larger. The focus shifted from securing individual project wins to building and leading entire industrial ecosystems, as demonstrated by the end-to-end SAF alliance. |
| Threats | Volatility in PGM prices; slow build-out of hydrogen infrastructure impacting demand; competition in manufacturing hydrogen components. | A forecast deficit in the platinum market could impact feedstock costs, even for recycling. The strategic partnership with Honeywell, to whom it sold a major business, creates complex interdependencies and potential future competition. | The primary threat shifted from general market conditions to specific strategic risks. The PGM market deficit is now both a threat (cost) and an opportunity (increasing the value of recycling). The relationship with Honeywell is now a key strategic variable to manage. |
Forward-Looking Insights and Summary
Johnson Matthey’s actions in 2025 signal a clear trajectory for the year ahead: the company is aggressively moving to construct and monetize circular industrial ecosystems. Its divestment strategy has transformed it into a leaner, more focused entity armed with the capital to dominate its chosen fields. The key signal to watch is the announcement of the first commercial project under the SAF alliance with Honeywell, Gidara, and Samsung E&A; this will be the ultimate proof point of its ecosystem-building strategy. A second critical indicator will be the commercial-scale deployment of its new ultrasound-based fuel cell recycling technology, which has the potential to fundamentally improve the economics of the hydrogen industry.
The company is no longer just a participant in the circular economy; it is positioning itself as the indispensable circulatory system for the energy transition. By creating closed-loop systems for the world’s most critical materials, Johnson Matthey is building a powerful economic and environmental moat. For executives and investors tracking the energy transition, understanding the intricate web of partnerships, technology deployments, and strategic capital shifts at companies like Johnson Matthey is essential. Analyzing these moves with the right tools provides the deep intelligence needed to navigate the opportunities and risks in this rapidly evolving market.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the main strategic shift for Johnson Matthey in 2025?
In 2025, Johnson Matthey pivoted from a diversified manufacturer to a sharply focused circular economy powerhouse. The key move was selling its Catalyst Technologies business for £1.8 billion to free up capital and concentrate on its core, high-growth markets: PGM services and sustainable technologies.
How is Johnson Matthey dominating the hydrogen market with PGM recycling?
Johnson Matthey is leveraging its position as the world’s largest PGM recycler to create closed-loop systems for the hydrogen economy. In 2025, it announced a breakthrough ultrasound technique developed with the University of Leicester that recovers 92% of platinum from fuel cells, turning a complex waste problem into a secure, circular supply of critical materials.
What is Johnson Matthey’s role in the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)?
Johnson Matthey provides the critical Fischer-Tropsch (FT) technology, such as its FT CANS™ process, which converts synthesis gas from waste into SAF. In 2025, it formed a major alliance with Honeywell, Gidara Energy, and Samsung E&A to offer an integrated, end-to-end solution for building waste-to-SAF plants globally.
Why did Johnson Matthey sell major parts of its business in 2024 and 2025?
The sales of its Medical Device Components business ($700 million) and Catalyst Technologies business (£1.8 billion) were strategic divestments. They were designed to streamline the company’s focus, resolve the weakness of a broad portfolio, and generate a significant ‘war chest’ of capital to reinvest and accelerate growth in its core circular economy and PGM services businesses.
What is the significance of Johnson Matthey’s partnerships with companies like Plug Power and Honeywell?
These partnerships are central to Johnson Matthey’s strategy of moving from a component supplier to an ‘ecosystem architect’. The Plug Power deal includes a closed-loop recycling provision for PGMs, while the Honeywell alliance creates a complete solution for SAF production. These collaborations embed JM’s technology and services into the entire value chain, making them indispensable to the energy transition.
Experience In-Depth, Real-Time Analysis
For just $200/year (not $200/hour). Stop wasting time with alternatives:
- Consultancies take weeks and cost thousands.
- ChatGPT and Perplexity lack depth.
- Googling wastes hours with scattered results.
Enki delivers fresh, evidence-based insights covering your market, your customers, and your competitors.
Trusted by Fortune 500 teams. Market-specific intelligence.
Explore Your Market →One-week free trial. Cancel anytime.
