LONDON: British coin maker Royal Mint has opened a new factory that will extract gold from old computers and phones to make jewelery and other items.
The facility will reduce dependence on mining by providing a sustainable source of the precious metal.
The Royal Mint will process 4,000 tonnes of printed circuit boards (PCBs) from electronic waste such as old laptops and TVs.
Mint’s collection of 886 will require approximately 600 mobile phones to make the ring, which weighs an estimated 7.5 grams (equivalent to one pound).
4000 tons of circuit boards will yield half a ton of gold, 1000 tons of copper, 2.5 tons of silver and between 50 and 60 kg of palladium.
On average, one ton of circuit boards will yield 165 gold worth 9,000 British pounds.
