The largest deposit of lithium in Europe
The demand for lithium is currently growing faster than new mining projects can be initiated.
Not only is lithium needed in batteries for electric cars and mobile phones – there is also a growing need for energy storage globally, that will accelerate the demand for lithium considerably.
The largest lithium deposit in Europe is located in Kaustinen, Finland, and this is also the mining project that is currently closest to realization of all known European deposits – a mine is planned to open there in 2020. Deposits have been known since the 1950s, but it is not until now, however, with the widespread use of lithium batteries, that the time is ripe for exploiting.
A large part of the world´s lithium deposits are being found in salt lakes. In Kaustinen, however, lithium occurs in bedrock, which means that its economical exploitation requires a factory to produce lithium carbonate. The advantage of this method is that the extracted lithium is considerably pure. It is estimated that there is enough lithium in the area for over 10 years, but as some new deposits have recently been found in the vicinity, even more new deposits are expected to be found in the future. Without a question, opening a mine and a lithium carbonate factory would bring about new business and hundreds of new jobs.