Highlights

• Signed a two-year agreement with Embassy Powdered Metals to supply pure copper powder worth about US$600,000, starting January 2027.

• Brought forward its roughly 800-tonne annual installed capacity target from calendar 2028 to the first half of 2027.

• Booked a purchase order of about US$200,000 for copper infiltration, its largest to date and first in that segment.

• Qualified 6061 aluminium powder for US Army cold spray use, with addition to the Defense Logistics Agency parts list planned.

One customer has now placed both Metal Powder Works Limited's (ASX:MPW) largest order and its first long-term supply contract. Embassy Powdered Metals signed a two-year agreement on 30 September 2026 for pure copper powder, about five weeks after its initial order. Shares in the Pittsburgh-based powder producer were trading at A$1.650 on 23 October 2026, up 3.77%.

A Copper Order Becomes a Contract

The first order, announced on 24 August 2026, was worth about US$200,000 (around A$275,000) and covered copper powder for copper infiltration, a process that improves the density, strength and dimensional precision of press-and-sintered parts. MPW described it as its largest order to date and its first in that segment of the press-and-sinter market. Delivery is scheduled before the end of 2026.

The long-term agreement builds on it. Embassy will take about US$300,000 of powder a year, or roughly US$600,000 over the two-year term, with supply due to begin in January 2027. The company said the contract forms part of the contracted demand supporting its capacity expansion. Further orders are anticipated as Embassy scales production, but none has been placed.

Bringing Forward the 800-Tonne Goal

The contract arrives after MPW moved up its expansion timetable. On 19 August, the company said it had pulled its target of about 800 metric tonnes of installed annual DirectPowder capacity forward by a full year, from calendar 2028 to the first half of 2027. It pointed to commercial-scale validation of its powder and rising order activity.

Its first NextGen unit has run at an annual capacity of 100 tonnes with a saleable yield above 95%. MPW plans to reach its larger target with several small, identical NextGen units, so that if one stops for maintenance the others can absorb its volume. The company makes powder from bar stock at its Neighborhood 91 facility in Pittsburgh using its patented, non-thermal DirectPowder process.

Defence Qualification and Leadership Additions

Beyond copper, MPW reported on 26 August that the US Army had approved a qualification package submitted by the University of Dayton Research Institute, qualifying MPW's 6061 aluminium powder for cold spray applications. The powder will be added to the Defense Logistics Agency Qualified Parts List and assigned a National Stock Number, making it a standard catalogue item. The institute is testing additional MPW alloys, and the company is targeting three to five qualified alloy and process combinations.

On the operations side, MPW appointed Dr Ahmed El Desouky as Chief Operating Officer on 29 July. He joins from Veeco Instruments, where he was Director of Operations, New Product Introduction. The board has set his priorities as expanding manufacturing capacity, improving yield across the powder portfolio and building supply chain and operational infrastructure.

Dates and Targets Ahead

The next dated steps are commercial. Delivery under the first Embassy order is scheduled before the end of 2026, and supply under the long-term agreement is due to start in January 2027. MPW's installed capacity target of about 800 metric tonnes is now set for the first half of 2027, while the qualification work with the University of Dayton Research Institute continues toward its three-to-five combination goal.