Green Lithium, London, United Kingdom, the mineral processing company, has secured a £631,000 grant from the Advanced Propulsion Centre‘s (APC) Automotive Transformation Fund Feasibility Studies (ATF FS2) to support development activity around its plan to build and operate Europe’s first large-scale lithium refinery, located in the UK.
Currently, there is no commercial lithium refining capability of scale in Europe, leaving the continent’s rapidly growing electric vehicle and sustainable energy storage sectors wholly reliant on China for its battery-grade lithium hydroxide.
Green Lithium aims to fill the missing link in the electric vehicle supply chain, using its world-leading sustainable and low-carbon refining process to connect the UK’s and Europe’s lithium battery and cell manufacturers with abundant international sources of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate.
This major new lithium refining hub will be critical in accelerating the transition to electric vehicles and meeting governmental net-zero targets.
It is projected that the UK and European electric vehicle industries will require 1.4 million tonnes of refined battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate per year by 2030, meaning growth of more than 400% in supply is needed over the next 10 years. However, that demand will not be met by the refining capacity that is currently available or planned.
Richard Taylor, founding director at Green Lithium, said: “The electric revolution is fundamental to reducing the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change.
“However, in order to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles and meet net-zero targets, we need to increase and diversify the supply of low-carbon, battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate.
“By providing the missing link in the supply chain, Green Lithium aims to become the gateway to, and critical enabler for, the UK and European electric vehicle market. We are committed to achieving a carbon net-zero operation, targeting 2030, and providing a secure, local, low-carbon source of refined battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate with 100% traceability for the lithium-ion battery industry.”
Julian Hetheringon, automotive transformation director at the APC, said: “As part of the second round of feasibility study funding by the Automotive Transformation Fund, we are pleased to award Green Lithium with a grant of £631,000.
“This funding is a great start in supporting companies like Green Lithium as they advance their future product development and manufacturing processes for a future net-zero vehicle supply chain.”
About Green Lithium
Green Lithium is an innovative mineral processing company with plans to build and operate a large-scale lithium refinery in the UK, and provide battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate to UK and European markets. The company will harness industry-leading process technology enabling clean, low-carbon processing of high volumes of hard-rock, unrefined lithium mineral spodumene concentrate.
At present, the battery-metal supply chain is dominated by China. There is no refining capability in Europe despite a significant market opportunity. Working with key strategic partners to address the need to improve the European battery-metal supply chain, Green Lithium will support the “net-zero” ambitions of society to transition to the future green economy.
About the Advanced Propulsion Centre
The Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) collaborates with UK government, the automotive industry and academia to accelerate the industrialisation of technologies, supporting the transition to deliver net-zero emission vehicles.
Since its foundation in 2013, APC has funded 150 low-carbon projects involving 375 partners, working with companies of all sizes, and has helped to create or safeguard over 50,000 jobs in the UK. The technologies developed in these projects are projected to save over 260 million tonnes of CO2, the equivalent of removing the lifetime emissions from 10.2 million cars.
With its deep sector expertise and cutting-edge knowledge of new propulsion technologies, APC’s role in building and advising project consortia helps projects start more quickly and deliver increased value. In the longer term, its work to drive innovation and encourage collaboration is building the foundations for a successful and sustainable UK automotive industry.
In 2019 the UK government committed the Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) to accelerate the development of a net-zero vehicle supply chain, enabling UK-based manufacturers to serve global markets. ATF investments are awarded through the APC to support strategically important UK capital and R&D investments that will enable companies involved in batteries, motors and drives, power electronics, fuel cells, recycling, and associated supply chains to anchor their future.