The European Union (EU) has set target to be the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. Electrification of the transport sector is one of the major fields contributing to this target, by shifting to electric vehicles (EVs) and creating a competitive manufacturing value chain in Europe with sustainable battery cells at its core. However, to reach the goal of producing 300 GWh/year expected from 2030, there will be a need for approximately 59kt of lithium (Li) for cathodes, 225kt of Class-1 high-purity nickel (Ni) and 29kt of cobalt (Co). But the EU currently depends 100% on the import of Li from mainly Chile (78%), while the End-of-life Recycling Input Rate (EoL-RIR) for Li is 0%.4 As for Co, the EU depends 86% on imports with an EoL-RIR of 22%.
Based on those facts, the current situation looks dramatic in terms of the resilience of the EU on the supply of battery materials. Therefore, securing access to sustainable raw materials is one of the top priorities for the EU to secure its economic future and the green transition. One of the main actions pursued by the EC is to stimulate the production of battery materials, such as Li and other CRMs, by developing sustainable and safe mining, processing, refining, and recycling capacity of raw materials from existing European resources (pegmatites mines, reserves of geothermal Li deposits -brines-, secondary resources such as the waste of the cathode production processes).
In the scope of harvesting the important potential of those primary and secondary resources available in Europe, there is a need to gain the trust of the society by developing environmentally friendly technologies and processes in order to obtain a social license to operate by the different stakeholders involved (industry, citizens, policymakers, etc.). The LiCORNE project is a cornerstone in building this trust, as it focuses on the development of breakthrough, cost-effective, safe and flexible technologies able to operate at improved yield while keeping a very low environmental footprint, and very efficient use of resources.
The LiCORNE project aims to establish the first ever Li supply chain in Europe, increasing the European Li processing and refining capacity for producing battery-grade chemicals from ores, geothermal and continental brines and off-specification cathode materials (waste). Such aim will be achieved by considering 5 main technology stages (Beneficiation → Physico-chemical transformation → Extraction → Separation & Purification → Recovery) involving the investigation of 14 different groundbreaking technologies that have been selected for their potential to operate at low CAPEX and OPEX, low carbon footprint, flexibility and industrial scalability.
