BRITISH LITHIUM
POWERING THE ELECTRIC TRANSFORMATION
BRITISH LITHIUM
FACED WITH THE ACCELERATED PUSH FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES, BRITISH LITHIUM IS SET TO ESTABLISH EFFICIENT, SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION OF BATTERY-GRADE LITHIUM CARBONATE FROM A LOCAL SOURCE.
POWERING THE ELECTRIC TRANSFORMATION PROJECT MANAGED BY: TREVOR GRETSINGER
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British Lithium, a company that started with just 2 people four years ago, has embarked on a game-changing project that could revolutionise the supply of the lithium required for large-scale manufacture of Li-ion batteries in the UK.
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ollowing years of metallurgical research and development, extensive ground mapping, geophysics and 3D modelling in 2019, British Lithium is well into its lithium drilling programme in Cornwall, following its first lithium exploration hole ever drilled in the United Kingdom.
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Company CEO Andrew Smith says: “Our focus is now on delivering a sustainable and ethical integrated lithium project in the UK. The amount of lithium we are planning to produce annually will be a major step forward in attracting
Andrew Smith, CEO, British Lithium
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more battery manufacturers and maintaining our car industry. If batteries are not made in the UK, carmakers are likely to continue investing in EV production in Europe. Yet Europe is not actually producing any batterygrade lithium, so achieving that in Cornwall would give the UK a huge competitive advantage.” Andrew, who has extensive experience in the mining industry and in running lithium projects abroad, explains that the company had been exploring in Cornwall for several years when he found a particular rock sample and immediately realised its potential. Exploration was then narrowed down to a site in Roche and the rest is history. “The business is really taking off now, and we are hiring. We have been awarded £500,000 by UK government to progress the research and development of hard rock lithium extraction. A great sign of confidence from the government in our industry and an incentive for us to expand the team.”
GROWING MARKET
There is currently no batterygrade lithium production in the UK or the whole of Europe. Automotive OEMs and suppliers have invested more than $100 billion in EVs over the past three years, and the battery value chain is projected by the World Economic Forum to expand 19-fold over today’s levels, requiring a substantive scale-up from mining lithium to cell production. The drilling tests in Cornwall have shown a potential yield of 21,000 tonnes of battery-quality lithium carbonate a year, which represents about one-third of what the UK would need for its electric revolution by 2030. “Our preference is to use the strategic advantage of a
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UK supply of lithium to attract a battery plant to Britain as a customer, however fastgrowing demand from Europe could also be met from the UK,” Roderick Smith, the company’s co-director, points out. “The ultimate aim is to set up a lithium refinery that would supply lithium carbonate to the local automotive industry.” The company believes this can be done sustainably and
cost-effectively in Cornwall, a county with an established business environment, developed infrastructure and availability of skilled workers. “As opposed to our counterparts in Australia for example, who operate their mines in deserts, here we have a very pleasant working environment offering good operating costs when it comes to production,” says Andrew Smith.
“OUR PREFERENCE IS TO USE THE STRATEGIC ADVANTAGE OF A UK SUPPLY OF LITHIUM TO ATTRACT A BATTERY PLANT TO BRITAIN AS A CUSTOMER, HOWEVER, FAST-GROWING DEMAND FROM EUROPE COULD ALSO BE MET FROM THE UK.” BUSINESS FOCUS MAGAZINE | 5
BRITISH LITHIUM
THE RIGHT EXPERTISE
Roderick Smith agrees: “The potential is huge. The UK car industry is the biggest exporter this country has, employing some 800,000 people and making 1.3 million cars in 2018, 80% of which were exported. To meet the government’s requirement, the whole of this industry needs to transform in just 9 years - if the output is to stay at the same level, considerable investments will have to be made and anything that gives the UK a competitive advantage will help.” British Lithium is based on wide-ranging expertise. The team has over a number of years collectively discovered, evaluated, financed, built and
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managed more than 7 mines. This provides British Lithium with a unique skill set. British Lithium is also the only lithium mine developer with an inhouse metallurgical research laboratory in the UK. Roderick Smith affirms that after working in the mining industry in various countries of the world, it would be a pleasure to use his experience on home soil. The added benefit is that the company can draw on available local skills. The Camborne School of Mines, which hosts a unique combination of scientific and engineering expertise in geology, mining and minerals processing, is a good source of local talent. “Cornwall has a very strong mining background and heritage that they are proud of and local communities have been very supportive of the project, looking forward to a renaissance of the mining industry in the county. There have been very few mining jobs in the UK for a
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long time. Most of the School’s graduates have found jobs overseas and would be thrilled at the new job opportunities on their doorstep.”
DRILLING FOR THE FUTURE
As most of the work has been performed outdoors, progress has not been affected too much by Covid-19. Andrew praised the excellent collaboration and support the company has had not just from the community but also their suppliers. “It has been a pleasure to work with reliable partners who provide excellent service. One such company is Geology Superstore which supplies all our geology equipment. Compared to our last project in Congo, where you have to think six months ahead, it’s great to get our deliveries immediately as and when required.” The company has now completed the second round of explorations and has just
started the third round. The plan is to start production in 3-5 years. “We have done a lot of research and development and have invested heavily in on-going metallurgical test work and process design. We are now building a 3,800 sq. ft laboratory in Cornwall, boasting specialist equipment that does not exist anywhere else in the UK.” Roderick Smith summarised the current business position: “It is great to be involved in such an exciting project. A lot of sectors are very depressed as a result of the pandemic, but we are in an area providing environmental solutions, with huge potential. The UK government is very keen to reduce carbon emissions, and Covid-19 has contributed to a greater awareness of the environment and its importance. We are in the right place at the right time.”
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BRITISH LITHIUM
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