A feasibility study of innovative mineral processing routes to accelerate the low-carbon production of cathode raw materials from North East Scotland for the UK’s automotive industry

APC预测，英国阴极材料对镍的需求将从2022年的3,000吨(“千吨”)增长至2030年的52千吨(增长1,600%)，同期钴的需求将从1千吨增长至9千吨(增长800%)。目前，英国国内没有这些金属的矿山生产，英国电池行业必须完全依赖竞争日益激烈的海外供应链来满足日益增长的需求。Aberdeen Minerals正在推进阿伯丁郡的矿物勘探和调查工作，重点是其Arthath项目，该项目是英国已知的最大镍矿床，电池原材料以镍钴铜硫化物矿化的形式存在于基岩中。可行性研究将研究从苏格兰东北部的矿石中提取电池金属的创新“湿法冶金”方法，以加快阿伯丁郡正极原材料的生产，并保留英国境内的“中游”加工。这项研究的结果将为该公司加快发展镍钴铜综合开采和加工业务的商业案例提供参考，这是紧急交付英国汽车行业必不可少的阴极材料的“联合”战略的一部分。

UK cathode material demand for nickel is forecast by APC to grow from 3 thousand tonnes ("kt") in 2022 to 52 kt in 2030 (1,600% increase), and for cobalt from 1 kt to 9 kt (800% increase) over the same period. Currently, there is no domestic UK mine production of these metals and the UK battery industry must rely entirely on increasingly competitive overseas supply chains to meet this growing demand.Aberdeen Minerals is advancing mineral exploration and investigation work in Aberdeenshire focused on its Arthrath Project, the largest known deposit of nickel in the UK where battery raw materials occur in bedrock in the form of nickel-cobalt-copper sulphide mineralisation.The feasibility study will investigate innovative "hydrometallurgical" approaches to extract battery metals from ores from North East Scotland to both accelerate the production of cathode raw materials from Aberdeenshire and retain the "midstream" processing within the UK. The results of the study will inform the company's business case to accelerate the development of an integrated nickel-cobalt-copper mining and processing operation, as part of a "joined up" strategy to urgently deliver the cathode materials essential to the UK's automotive industry.