Critical Minerals

Cornwall has been chosen by the Department for Business and Trade as a High Potential Opportunity (HPO) for tech metals due to its abundance of tin, tungsten, copper and one of the largest concentrations of lithium-enriched granite in Europe.

Responsible extraction of lithium, tin, tungsten and copper in Cornwall is being made possible by the wealth of historic information about the subsurface that already exists thanks to Cornwall’s mining heritage. This is further strengthened by innovations in extraction technologies and a network of supply chain companies on hand to service the industry. Centuries-old maps, plans and reports are critical to today’s sustainable exploration in Cornwall, feeding into modern digital subsurface geological models so that further exploration can be conducted without the need for extensive drilling. Developing domestic, industrial-scale production of these critical technology metals would enable the region to support the delivery of the UK’s Critical Minerals Strategy and provide the UK manufacturing industry with materials fundamental to the Green Transition.

Several companies are currently prospecting for lithium in Cornwall, confident they can extract large volumes of battery-grade lithium compounds from granite and the geothermal brines from deep underground in a low-carbon, sustainable way.

And with access to tin and copper being critical to enabling a greener future, and currently no domestic production of either metal in the UK, Cornwall is once again leading the way.

With exploration companies seeking to extract these metals in a more responsible and sustainable way, bolstered by a legacy of invaluable experience and expertise and supported by the University of Exeter’s Camborne School of Mines, Cornwall is leading the development of a domestic supply chain to support net zero targets.