The MECALO consortium met on 14–15 April in Montigny-le-Bretonneux, France, hosted by Eramet. The two-day meeting brought together all partners to review technical progress, discuss cross-work package integration and align on next steps for the project’s development.

The meeting provided a comprehensive overview of activities across all work packages, covering developments in materials preparation, process design, system modelling, techno-economic and sustainability assessments, as well as dissemination and safety-related aspects. While strong progress was reported overall, partners also discussed areas where further alignment and optimisation are needed as experimental and modelling results continue to evolve.

A key focus of the discussions was the integration between upstream material development and downstream process performance, with partners exchanging updates on ongoing experimental campaigns and pilot activities. The consortium also reviewed the status of selected process routes and configurations, confirming their overall validity while identifying specific areas requiring further refinement.

On the modelling and assessment side, partners presented progress on system-level simulations, life cycle assessment, techno-economic analysis and value chain modelling. These activities are increasingly converging to support a more integrated understanding of the MECALO concept, although several inputs are still being consolidated as new data becomes available from ongoing work.

The meeting concluded with a technical visit to the facilities of Eramet Ideas, providing participants with valuable insight into the industrial environment supporting the project’s activities.

Overall, the Montigny meeting reinforced strong collaboration among partners, confirmed steady technical progress across work packages and helped further align priorities for the next phase of the MECALO project.