Planning permission granted for Europe’s largest lithium hydroxide refinery

Alkemy Capital Investments has announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Tees Valley Lithium (TVL) has received full planning permission to build Europe’s largest lithium hydroxide refinery at Teesside, to supply the burgeoning electric vehicle battery industry.

The refinery will be capable of producing both lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate sourced from imported high grade feedstock from global lithium producers.

TVL said, building a European lithium processing facility will reduce the regional dependence on China, which currently controls 90% of the world’s lithium refining capacity.

The new refinery is expected to produce enough lithium hydroxide to supply 100% of the forecasted automotive demand in the UK by 2030, with a further 35% of its total production available for export to other countries in Europe and elsewhere.

TVL is currently in advanced discussions with a number of offtake customers, including European gigafactories and electric vehicle OEMs. These customers are increasingly focussed on price, transparency and low embodied carbon, when sourcing high-grade lithium products.

Sam Quinn, Director of Alkemy commented: “The full endorsement from Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council is a critical step in taking TVL to its next phase of developing the UK’s first lithium hydroxide refinery and spearheading a brand-new industry in Europe and a vital part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

This decision allows us to rapidly advance with our engineering studies ahead of construction, due to commence in 2023. The burgeoning demand from electric vehicle OEMs highlights the urgent need for significant lithium refinery capacity in Europe, which currently does not exist.”