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Sustainable Technological Solutions for Copper, Lithium and Minor Metals including CRMs-From Extraction to Processing in Strategic EU-Chile Partnership

Objective

Ensuring a reliable and diversified supply of Critical Raw Materials (CRM) is vital for maintaining Europe’s technological sovereignty and supporting both the green and digital transitions. Copper and lithium are particularly strategic, given their indispensable role in electrification, renewable grids, digital infrastructure, advanced batteries, and e-mobility. With increasing worldwide demand, ensuring secure and sustainable supply for EU is urgent. Strengthening EU–Chile cooperation is therefore key, as Chile is the world’s leading copper producer and among the top holders of global lithium reserves. Furthermore, Chile maintains a strong sustainability agenda.
LiCuPlus focuses on innovative technology developments applied in advanced production routes of copper and lithium, bringing together key industrial and academic partners from Chile and the EU.
In the copper value-chain, it links ore, extraction, processing, and refining steps via advanced geometallurgy, develops an efficient technology to tackle arsenic-rich copper concentrates from Chile to increase their value, advances a cost-effective technology tailored to increase the efficiency of European processors leading to higher copper yields, and advances two alternative integrated processing routes for high yield, multi-material recovery and low-carbon copper recovery optimised for EU-Chile industrial contexts.
LiCuPlus innovative production routes will achieve 98% reduction of Cu-slag, 99% of hazardous arsenic-waste reduction and saving of 2 Mt CO2-e/y equivalent to ~35% of EU copper sector GHG 35% emissions, while processing 250kt/y of responsible copper supply to the EU and valorising minor materials such as As, Sb, Bi, Ge, and REE.
For lithium production, LiCuPlus demonstrates a combination of DLE and brine-concentration on low-grade Chilean brines preserving 11 M m³ water while increase the lithium recovery by 30kt/y Li2CO₃, LiOH, and Li-metal production as battery precursors.
LiCuPlus technol

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Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-IA - HORIZON Innovation Actions

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-CL4-2025-01

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Coordinator

TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET BERGAKADEMIE FREIBERG
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 059 500,00
Address
AKADEMIESTRASSE 6
09599 Freiberg
Germany

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Region
Sachsen Chemnitz Mittelsachsen
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 1 059 500,00

Participants (18)