Cornwall eyes historic mines to fuel energy transition

Mining firms hope to re-visit old sites in Cornwall in a bid to revitalise the region's metal-based economy and fuel the global transition towards zero carbon technologies, delegates heard at today's Cornish mining conference.

A series of projects in the region aim to produce lithium, copper, tin and tungsten, with many exploring old mining sites that helped fuel the UK's industrial revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries.

"This new industrial revolution is an unprecedented opportunity for Cornwall, which most of you will know is famous for tin and copper mining," said Jeremy Wrathall, chief executive of Cornish Lithium, which is developing a geothermal brine extraction project. "We have been mining here for 4,000 years, which gives us a huge amount of historical data we can re-analyse for today. It is one of the most geologically prospective regions of the UK and hosts one of only five large lithium enriched granites in the world," he said.

Cornish Lithium is one of several companies looking to tap into energy transition metals that are common in Cornish geology. Others include Cornish Metals — which is developing tin and tungsten mines in central and west Cornwall — and Cornwall Resources, which hopes to mine copper and tin in Redmoor, east Cornwall.

"There are around 2,000 historical mines in the region for copper and tin. I like to refer to it as one of the most heavily mined regions in the world, yet one of the least explored," Cornish Metals president Richard Williams said. "From the exploration perspective, we have seen huge advances in technology…none of these have been applied in Cornwall, so that's the opportunity here."

Advances in exploration technology — such as satellite radar penetration, remote sensing and airborne magnetics — are expected to allow modern mining firms to take advantage of resources that were unknown to the region's historic miners.

Rising metal prices are also helping fuel ambitions and encourage investment. Prices for lithium hydroxide are now $27-27.50/kg cif China, up from just $8.50-10/kg at the start of 2021, according to Argus assessments. Copper is trading at record highs, with the three-month LME contract pushing above $10,000/t in recent days. Tin was around $5,700/t when the South Crofty mine in central Cornwall shut down in 1998, but the LME three-month contract is at $39,550-39,600/t today.

"This is a time when Cornwall's mineral bounty has never been more important or valuable — discoveries are being made that can no longer be ignored," Strategic Minerals executive director Peter Wale said.

By Thomas Kavanagh