Europe’s surging demand for the battery metal but lack of capacity to refine lithium highlights the strategic importance of Green Lithium and Rio Tinto. Mining giant Rio Tinto (RIO) and UK refinery developer Green Lithium are working together to establish an end-to-end lithium supply chain designed to support the automotive and manufacturing industries in the UK and EU. The partnership allows Rio Tinto and Green Lithium to benefit from the growing demand for electric vehicle (EV) metals. It is also in line with the parties’ shared goal of supporting decarbonization efforts and meeting the growing demand for sustainable sources of battery materials.
“By building our refinery, we will increase the availability of low-carbon, battery-grade lithium chemicals to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles and sustainable energy storage,” Green Lithium CEO Sean Sargent said Tuesday.
Green Lithium’s ambitious plans to build and operate a major lithium refinery in the UK are the backbone of the announced partnership. The facility will utilize low carbon, environmentally friendly lithium concentrate processing advancements to produce high purity lithium chemicals for the UK and EU markets.
Sarah Jones, UK Minister for Industry and Decarbonization, praised the partnership, highlighting the potential to strengthen the local economy and the UK’s key minerals supply chain. Not only will this support highly skilled jobs in the North East, it will also boost our key minerals supply chain. We will continue to build a cleaner, greener future for our automotive industry and drive our mission to achieve net zero emissions.
Rio Tinto’s Jadar lithium project in Serbia, which had its mining license revoked in 2022, has recently stepped up its efforts to restart the project. The project is expected to be the largest lithium mine in Europe. In July this year, Serbia reinstated Rio Tinto’s development license, but the company must obtain approval to produce at the mine.
The Jadar project is expected to produce 58,000 tons of refined battery-grade lithium carbonate per year, which would provide enough lithium to power 1 million electric vehicles and meet 90% of Europe’s current lithium demand.
