UK should work with EU to address critical minerals shortages: Northover

The UK government should partner with the EU to promote sustainable, secure supply chains for critical minerals, according to Baroness Lyndsey Northover, member of the UK House of Lords and vice chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on critical minerals.

Speaking at the Mining & Critical Minerals Investment conference in London on Dec. 5, Northover said that, in order to capitalize on the renewable energy transition and surging demand for electric vehicles, the UK and Europe should work together to build out their domestic battery manufacturing capacities, while ensuring that their industries enjoy secure access to critical minerals.

"When facing something like this, it's much better to work together especially given that [the EU and the UK] seem to be in the same kind of place," she said.

In May, the EU introduced the European Critical Raw Materials Act aimed at ensuring secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials for Europe's industry and lowering the EU's dependency on imports from third countries.

The UK government has also recognized the importance of strengthening critical mineral supply chains and announced plans to publish its own critical minerals strategy in the spring of 2025. According to Industry Minister Sarah Jones, the new strategy would differ from previous strategies by adopting a more targeted and long-term approach and focus, including collaborating with international partners to ensure access to supplies.

Northover commended the UK government's recognition of the importance of critical minerals in ensuring the country's economic competitiveness. In particular, she noted the recent announcement that the government will permit UK Export Finance (UKEF) to provide export credit financing for international critical minerals projects and support investment into new supply routes.

"Mandating UK Export Finance to help finance upstream projects on critical minerals, whether in mining or processing, providing that the product is exported to the UK, is a crucial step for strengthening our battery supply chains," she said.

Noting that the UK is also a member of the Mineral Security Partnership and has signed critical minerals agreements with countries such as Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Zambia, Northover said that the UK must do more to establish a secure and sustainable supply of critical minerals to support its industrial objectives.

"I'm not yet convinced that, that [the Mineral Security Partnership] is going to produce a real benefit for the UK. We need to put resources behind what happens here," she said.

"If we don't build in the value in the UK, then there is a real risk that we end up jeopardizing our economic competitiveness," she added.

Northover emphasized that the UK government must aim to strengthen its critical mineral supply chains by fostering close ties with Africa's mineral-rich countries, noting that China and Russia have been heavily involved in Africa for many decades.

She added that the US, the EU and the Gulf states are now establishing bilateral critical minerals agreements in Africa in an attempt to reduce their dependence on China which dominates the supply chains for key critical minerals and renewable technologies.

Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, assessed lithium carbonate at $10,650/mt CIF Europe Dec. 5, down 33% from the start of the year.