Livista to refine lithium near German port of Emden

Luxembourg-based Livista Energy Europe has just revealed that the location of its recently announced lithium refinery in Germany will be built in Emden, Lower Saxony.

The German refinery was announced a couple of weeks ago. Livista says the refinery location in Emden is a strategic decision since the seaport is the third largest North Sea port in Germany and offers good infrastructural and geographical connections. This is where the Luxembourg company says Europe’s growing electric vehicle industry will be supplied.

“Our first plant will supply enough battery-grade lithium to produce 850,000 electric vehicles per year,” says Daniel Bloor, managing director of Livista Energy Europe. “By locating in Germany, a country with such clear policies towards electrification and battery cell production, we will create shorter, cleaner and more sustainable supply chains and resilience.”

This figure of 850,000 electric vehicles per year, (presumably calculated on the current size of batteries in electric cars) has been summised on the basis that Livista’s refinery should initially produce up to 40,000 tonnes of battery-grade lithium products (30,000 tonnes of Li hydroxide and 10,000 tonnes of Li carbonate LCE) per year.

Livista says its new facility will be able to refine all types of lithium sources, including spodumene rock from Australia and Africa, brines from South America, and lithium intermediates (Li-sulphate or technical grade Li-carbonate) from recycled battery materials. The port is clearly advantageous here for access to both recycled and freshly extracted lithium sources from outside of Europe as well.

The company also stated that access to a high volume of renewable energy also informed its decision to locate here. Livista is already in deeper negotiations with the port operator Niedersachsen Ports about the use of a site close to the port. Both parties have agreed on the key points of the pending contract in agreement. The federal state of Lower Saxony promised the company its support for implementing the project at the Emden site.

Lower Saxony’s Minister for Economic Affairs, Transport, Building and Digital Affairs Olaf Lies stated: “We want to further develop our coast into a gateway and hub for clean energy for all of Germany. The opportunity is great because industry follows energy. Settlements take place where energy is also available – ideally cheap and clean. The Livis-ta project is a textbook example of this.”

The minister went on to explain that Livista aims to run half of the plant’s capacity with recycled raw materials by 2030. “Lower Saxony could thus also become a pioneer in the circular economy and set another milestone on the path of the transport transition and the transformation of our economy. We will therefore continue to accompany the realisation of the investment project very closely,” says the Minister.

Source: information via email