The UK has launched the country’s first-ever centre to collect and analyse information on the supply of critical minerals, ahead of increasingly competitive market conditions for these materials.

The so-called Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre (CMIC) in Nottingham will be run by the British Geological Survey (BGS), which will combine its own resources, expertise and data with those of third parties to provide up-to-date analysis on the supply, demand and flow of critical materials around the world. Some £3.6 million ($4.31m) in funding will be available for the centre over three years.

Its launch precedes the publication of a UK critical minerals strategy later this year, Kallanish learns from the government.

“Critical minerals are so important to every aspect of our daily lives, whether it’s the phones we use, the cars we drive, or the batteries in our laptops,” says industry minister Lee Rowley.

The government says that with the production of some critical minerals expected to increase by nearly 500% by 2050, it is essential that the UK takes steps to secure a resilient and sustainable supply chain.

An initial study by CMIC states that: “Although the potential for significant production of battery minerals in the UK is limited, there is a good case for undertaking systematic exploration using modern techniques in some areas. This is already underway in southwest England, but other areas, notably northeast Scotland, merit further investigation for nickel and cobalt resources.”

According to the CMIC, based on current information on the most likely battery chemistries that will make up production (mainly NMC), in 2030 the UK will have an annual requirement for about 15,000 tonnes of lithium, 90,000 t of nickel, 11,000 t of cobalt and 10,000 t of manganese to synthesise cathode active materials. The country will also require 135,000 t/y of graphite to produce anodes.