Northern Miner Commentary: Innovation is needed in processing of battery raw materials

In the 2019 edition of The Northern Miner’s Technology Metals issue, David Anonychuk, Jane Spooner and Reiner Haus discuss the increasing adoption of electric vehicles and energy storage technologies. There is little doubt demand will grow for battery raw materials, which must be sourced from the mining industry. With increasing investments from automotive companies and battery manufacturers, they will require new battery mineral deposits to be developed.

Over the next 10 years, we expect demand related to battery raw materials to increase four times for lithium, five times for cobalt, and up to seven times for graphite. With this anticipated increase in demand — and with limited supply sources — the mining industry is being driven to primary sources, often with increasingly complex mineralogy.

Innovation drives end-use markets, and, in turn, this results in innovative flow sheets and adoption of new process technologies.

To read the full article online at The Northern Miner, please click here.