EU finances first lithium project in Europe
LiCORNE: EU plans to build its own lithium supply chain to strengthen European battery production

The European Union wants to establish its own lithium supply chain to increase lithium processing and refining capacity in Europe. The EU-funded project, called LiCORNE ("Lithium Recovery and Battery Grade Materials Production from European Resources"), aims to promote the production of battery-grade chemicals and utilize European lithium deposits. The EU Commission is funding the project with a total of €6.8 million over the next four years.
The planned supply chain will include five major primary raw material owners, whose resources are expected to include 2.7 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent in Europe alone. The EU intends to focus on European deposits, although material mined on other continents could theoretically be processed in Europe. The 2.7 million tons of LCE located in Europe could be used to produce about 3,000 GWh of battery cells.
Among the project partners is the Chilean chemical company Sociedad Química y Minera, known in the battery industry as one of Chile's largest lithium producers. LiCORNE will also investigate various technologies for processing and recovering lithium. This will involve recycling lithium, cobalt and nickel from cathode material waste for reuse.
German partners in the project are the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), EnBW and Fraunhofer ICT. KIT is investigating lithium extraction using electrochemical methods from deep geothermal waters in the Upper Rhine Graben, using existing iron-based battery materials. Waste batteries are also seen as a source of lithium. The researchers are investigating retired lithium-ion storage batteries, which could be an important future source of raw materials.
The LiCORNE project is an important step for the European steel and stainless steel industry as it strengthens competitiveness and helps reduce CO2 emissions. The lithium supply chain is also an important step for the European battery industry, as it improves access to raw materials in Europe and makes Europe less dependent on supplies from other parts of the world. It will make the future production of batteries in Europe more competitive and sustainable. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
