Lithium (Li) is a chemical element that at its purest takes the form of a soft silver metal. Present in more than 145 types of mineral ores, it is never found in its native metal form. Instead, it can be extracted from hard rock, as in Australia, or recovered by solar evaporation in large saltwater brine basins, as in the South American Andes – the simplest and cheapest method. In 2020, the EU declared lithium a “critical raw material” along with cobalt and nickel, which are also used to make the batteries needed for the energy transition.
Lithium-ion batteries are based on a flow of lithium ions between a positive electrode containing cobalt or manganese and a negative graphite electrode. Developed in the 1970s, lithium batteries have since become the most efficient means of storing electricity. The technology has been widely adopted by the automotive industry over the past decade, and the need for lithium will likely multiply by a factor of 18 by 2030, and a factor of 60 by 2050.
Alkemy Capital Investments plc (LON:ALK, FRA: JV2) is focussed on developing projects in the energy transition metals sector. Alkemy’s wholly-owned subsidiary Tees Valley Lithium (TVL) is developing a state of the art lithium hydroxide plant at Teesside, UK. TVL is Europe’s largest independent and sustainable lithium hydroxide producer.
