ARCTIC LITHIUM

One of the central platforms of SPIEF-2023 was the “Arctic – Dialogue Territory” stand. Its business program included more than 15 events with the participation of the most important Arctic players – from ministers, heads of major corporations, governors and investors, to scientists and practitioners.

• On the sidelines of the forum, the General Director of Arctic Lithium JSC, Dmitry Vysotsky, exclusively answered questions from the Project Office for the Development of the Arctic (PORA).

– What is the reason for the surge of interest in lithium production?

– Until the last moment, before the sanctions, the supply of raw materials came from abroad, we imported it. As soon as the problems started, the question arose that it is necessary to create this industry [within the country], to ensure raw material security for the Russian lithium products manufacturer.

– What makes the lithium deposits on the Kola Peninsula attractive?

– In the Zabaykalsky Krai, there are many clusters of lithium-bearing ores, but the lithium content in them is very small, it does not exceed 0.7%. If we talk about the Kola Peninsula, there it is from 1% and above, on average, 1.2-1.5%. From the point of view of extraction, the efficiency there is much higher, and the cost price is lower. And the volumes of reserves are very large.

– How will the environmental safety of the Murmansk region be ensured during the upcoming lithium mining? 

– Now we have given an order to the Murmansk land management company (“Murmansk Land Management Enterprise” – note PORA) to calculate the potential environmental damage, which we are ready to compensate. At the deposit, we will mine the ore material, crush it and obtain a concentrate not by chemical means, but by heavy media separation – ferrosilicon is used as a medium regulator there, which is the same as sand. We have nothing more harmful than the sand and stones that lie there. It turns out that we took the stones, crushed them, extracted the lithium and returned them back. All these points are stipulated by the license.

– Can the explored volumes of lithium in Russia cover all the country’s economic needs? 

– Even if we launch everything that exists, and at least half of what is declared as new, we will cover only 30 percent of domestic consumption. The industry, which in one way or another uses lithium or lithium compounds, will not have enough of it. There are projects of Tatneft, Gazprom and Irkutsk Oil Company, which plan to extract lithium from associated geothermal waters. This is another technology that would allow increasing production volumes [in Russia].

– Can we, as before, count on the supply of lithium from Latin American and other countries?

– It is problematic to work with Argentina, since their lithium industry is controlled by certain structures located north of Argentina (the expert means the USA – note PORA).

Chile is the largest producer and supplier of lithium raw materials. The SQM company (the second largest lithium producer in the world – note PORA) is now opening its largest plant in China. That is, they are moving away from supplying raw materials, they themselves have decided to engage in [high] processing, obtaining lithium products, batteries.

There are logistical problems with Bolivia, their infrastructure is not yet developed enough for them to be able to provide all the volumes that we declare.

I am a patriot and interested in developing [production] within Russia, being 100% self-sufficient.

The interview can be viewed at the link: https://youtu.be/XwFUzFEyoLs

June 9, 2023 Arctic Lithium JSC