The buyback prices at Derichebourg are not published on a centralized national grid. Each site applies its own purchase rates, indexed to the global market prices of the day and adjusted according to the quality of the received lot. Before loading a utility vehicle, we recommend understanding how these prices are formed and what shifts a sale from “fair” to genuinely advantageous.
Difference between global prices and buyback prices at Derichebourg depot
Copper is trading around $9,984 per ton on international markets, aluminum around $2,676 per ton. These quotations serve as a reference, but the price paid at the depot is always lower than the global price. The margin between the two covers transportation, secondary sorting, remelting, and the operational margin of the recycler.
At Derichebourg, as with any industrial scrap dealer, this discount varies by metal. For clean stripped copper, it remains moderate because the metal almost directly goes to the foundry. For mixed aluminum or insulated cables, the discount widens: it requires separating, stripping, and sorting the alloys.
Comparing the current metal prices at Derichebourg with the day’s LME quotation gives an idea of the applied discount and allows one to judge whether the locally offered price is consistent.
A point often overlooked: price units differ by source. Brass may be listed at €7.3 per kilogram on a comparator, while copper appears in dollars per ton. Any comparison without unit conversion is misleading.
Quality of the lot and sorting before sale: what really changes the price
Raw material is not worth the sorted material. A lot of stripped copper cables trades significantly better than the same tonnage in PVC insulated cables, because the recycler saves the stripping step. This principle applies to all non-ferrous metals.
We observe three concrete levers to improve the buyback price:
- Separate ferrous from non-ferrous before moving. A mixed bin will be weighed and paid at the scrap rate, even if it contains buried copper or brass under sheet metal.
- Strip electrical cables when the volume justifies it. The price difference per kilo between insulated cable and stripped copper more than covers the time spent.
- Remove unwanted elements (steel screws on aluminum parts, plastic fittings on copper piping). A “clean” lot falls into a higher price category.
The manager of the Vire Normandie site (formerly GDE, now under Derichebourg since 2022) confirms this logic: value depends as much on sorting as on the day’s price. An individual arriving with a well-separated lot gets a better rate than a professional dumping bulk material.
Steel and iron scrap: a volume market, not a unit margin
Scrap represents the bulk of the volumes processed by Derichebourg, but its price per ton remains low compared to non-ferrous metals. The profitability of a scrap sale relies on tonnage, not on price per kilo.
For an individual clearing out a garage or workshop, scrap rarely generates a significant amount. However, accumulating scrap to reach a weight threshold can trigger a slightly better rate at certain sites, which apply a reverse sliding scale: the heavier the lot, the higher the unit price.
Recent semi-annual performance from Derichebourg confirms that recycling activity remains strongly correlated with copper and aluminum prices. Scrap follows a different dynamic, more linked to collection volumes and demand from steelmakers than to LME quotations.
Check the price before moving: a concrete method
Derichebourg does not offer a unified public pricing grid on its corporate site. Prices found online come either from competing scrap dealers (Fert Métal, for example, publishes its rates), from journalistic estimates, or from third-party sites that aggregate market data.
The most reliable approach remains a phone call to the nearest depot. We recommend asking three specific questions:
- The purchase price per kilo for each metal in the lot (stripped copper, insulated cable, aluminum casing, brass, lead).
- The minimum weight threshold to benefit from the displayed rate, as some sites do not buy below a certain volume.
- The conditions for refusal: presence of hazardous materials, excessive mixing, lack of identification for legal traceability.
Prices may vary from one Derichebourg site to another for the same metal, depending on geographic location (proximity to a foundry, transportation costs to the processing hub) and the stock already at the depot.
Copper, aluminum, brass, lead: hierarchy of buyback prices
Without an official grid published by Derichebourg, the hierarchy remains constant in the recycling sector. Stripped copper is paid the best, followed by brass, then clean aluminum. Lead falls within an intermediate range but with additional regulatory constraints related to its toxicity.
Mixed or painted aluminum is worth significantly less than rim or casing aluminum. Aluminum alloys are not equal: a lot of automotive rims, easily identifiable and recyclable, trades better than a mix of profiles, cans, and foundry parts.
Stripped copper cable remains a sought-after product by all recyclers. Competition among depots for this type of lot can work in the seller’s favor. Calling two or three sites within a reasonable radius before moving takes ten minutes and can represent a significant difference on a lot of several dozen kilos.
Derichebourg’s recent performance, driven by rising scrap volumes and copper and aluminum prices, shows that the recycling market remains cyclical and responsive to international prices. Selling at the right time, when quotations are high, is as important as properly sorting your lot.