BritLit: British Lithium Production

该SuRP项目将通过工艺验证加速锂生产规模的扩大，从中试规模扩大到计划中的4.46亿英镑的采石场/精炼厂，每年生产20,800吨LCE，满足英国预计锂需求的三分之一。英国锂公司是英国第一家钻探锂的公司，并在康沃尔的云母花岗岩中发现了1.17亿吨锂资源，位于历史悠久的粘土矿区。由于锂从未从云母花岗岩中商业提取，因此需要一种创新的新工艺。在过去的5年中，我们开发了正在申请专利的LiMica-Sep（TM）和LiSep（TM）技术。我们的静电工艺不使用任何化学物质从花岗岩中浓缩云母，并在水中进行单一的中温煅烧和中性pH浸出，然后进行湿法冶金净化，生产电池级锂。为使用复杂的新技术和原型设备开发的高资本成本融资需要高水平的规模准备验证，这只能通过广泛的试点和生产大规模样品来验证技术资格来实现。英国锂公司在康沃尔郡新建的300万英镑试点工厂展示了从开采矿石到电池级碳酸锂的端到端过程。它已经成功地生产了99.9%的Li2CO3，但还需要进一步的工作来改进、优化和验证该工艺，并生产有代表性的锂样品以供客户验证。电池级碳酸锂和氢氧化锂在全球范围内已经供不应求，英国或欧洲还没有生产。到2035年，英国锂电池需求将从2000吨/年增长到7.5万吨/年，全球锂电池需求将从22.5万吨/年增长到250万吨/年。由进口锂制造的电池不太可能符合自由贸易协定中的原产地规则（RoO）。目前，英国制造的汽车有82%出口，其中55%出口到欧盟。到2027年，电动汽车的本地含量必须至少达到55%，电池的本地含量必须达到65%，或者电池的本地含量达到70%。英国制造的含有英国产锂电池的电动汽车将具有免税销售到欧盟的竞争优势，但与欧盟制造的汽车相比，它们也将具有当地价格优势，因为进口锂而不符合RoO标准，因此需要缴纳10%的英国关税。当地锂供应的可用性预计将刺激下游供应链的进一步投资。一项独立的环境影响研究对我们的流程进行了基准测试，并向现有和拟议的锂生产商提出了全面的项目，证明我们的环境、碳、水和ESG表现在同类产品中是最好的。

This SuRP project will accelerate through validation of processes the scale-up of lithium production from pilot-scale, to a planned £446M quarry/refinery producing 20,800tpa LCE, meeting one-third of projected UK lithium requirements.British Lithium was the first company to drill for lithium in UK, and discovered a 117Mt lithium Resource in micaceous granite in Cornwall, within historic clay mining areas.As lithium has never been extracted commercially from micaceous granite, an innovative new process was required. Over the past 5 years, we developed our patent-pending LiMica-Sep(TM) and LiSep(TM) technologies. Our electrostatic process uses no chemicals to concentrate mica from granite, and a single medium-temperature calcine and neutral pH leach in water, followed by hydrometallurgical purification to produce battery-grade lithium.Financing the high capital cost for development using complex new technologies and prototype equipment requires a high level of scale-up readiness validation, which can only be achieved by extensive piloting and production of sizable samples to validate technical qualification.British Lithium's new £3 million pilot plant in Cornwall demonstrates the end-to-end process from mined ore through to battery-grade lithium carbonate. It has successfully produced 99.9% Li2CO3, however further work is proposed to refine, optimise and validate the process and to produce representative lithium samples for customer validation.Battery-grade lithium carbonate and hydroxide are already in short supply globally, and none is yet produced in the UK or Europe. UK Li-battery demand will grow from 2,000tpa to 75,000tpa LCE by 2035, and global demand from 225,000tpa to 2.5Mtpa.Cells made from imported lithium are unlikely to meet Rules of Origin (RoO) in free-trade agreements. Currently, 82% of UK built cars are exported, 55% of them to the EU. By 2027, EVs must have at least 55% local content, and a battery with either 65% local content for the cell, or 70% for the battery.UK made EVs with batteries containing UK sourced lithium would have the competitive advantage of tariff-free sale into the EU, but so too they would have a local price advantage over cars made in the EU, not meeting RoO due to imported lithium, and therefore subjected to a 10% UK tariff. The availability of local lithium supply is expected to foment further investment in the downstream supply chain.An independent environmental impact study benchmarked our process and proposed full-scale project to existing and proposed lithium producers, proving our environmental, carbon, water and ESG performance to be best in class.