BORON MINING

Research has revealed that lithium can be extracted from boron waste. The connection between boron waste and lithium offers opportunities to create battery-grade lithium for supply in a sustainable manner. It can be done via three-phase extraction or by simply extracting lithium from boron clay by roasting and leaching. Both Rio Tinto and Eti Maden claim to be the world's first to market with methods to extract lithium from boron.

Vulcan Energy Resources announced in November that its leading German site had significant lithium reserves with 181 milligrams per litre. Lithium and Boron can be found and extracted from Geothermal Brine. Vulcan plans to market its lithium as “zero carbon.”. Vulcan’s Zero Carbon Lithium business is different from current lithium extraction projects in that it causes no disruptions to communities or the environment.

ABR Boron Facility: In a welcome move for ABR, the US Government has designated the Fort Cady boron and lithium site as critical infrastructure. Given the high demand and limited supply for boron, the move marks an important step in securing supplies of boron for key industries such as advanced energy and for decarbonization efforts.

Boron USA: The production of boron USA and boron extracted products in the USA is a strategic activity. Borates extraction as high-end minerals contributes to the advanced technology of industries such as aerospace and defence. They are also important to secure food supply in domestic agriculture, and contribute to decarbonisation efforts. The USA is a net importer of borates given Eti Maden’s control of supply and declining production by Rio Tinto but new sources – the Fort Cady project by ABR – will address this imbalance

Country Profile - Boron Turkey: Evidence of borates mining has been found dating back to Roman times in Turkey. Turkey is the world’s largest producer with 73% of the world's total boron reserves. The largest tincal deposit is the Kirka deposit at Eskisehir. Bigadic (colemanite & ulexite), Emet(colemanite), Kestelek (colemanite, probertite & ulexite), Kirka (tincal) are the main borate-producing regions of Turkey.

Rio Tinto Mine. The Serbian government has finally revoked Rio Tinto's licenses for lithium exploration in Serbia in the latter part of January 2022. The government gave in to the protesters who have been opposed to the Anglo-Australian mining company's project on environmental grounds. Last year, the company committed to the project as global miners push for metals necessary to transition to green energy. This includes lithium which is used in the production of electric vehicle batteries. The project was already suspended in December 2021 due to environmental deterioration and forced displacement concerns.