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Did you know, that a single lithium mine in Kaustinen, Finland contains approximately 11 million tons of lithium? That is enough to to produce over a million electric cars. What's even more staggering, is that a large scale production of lithium in Kaustinen would mean around 5% of global lithium production according to Keliber! Just from a single mine!
So what exactly is Keliber? It's a Finnish mining and battery chemical company that is in charge of the lithium production in Kaustinen. The production will begin in 2024, and will last for over 13 years. Keliber is owned by international mining companies Norwegian Nordic Mining ASA and Sibanye-Stillwater, along with Finnish investment companies and private companies.
But Kaustinen is not the only substantial lithium covering in Finland. Despite Kaustinen having the richest lithium covering in all of Europe, there are many other significant lithium deposits located in the Finnish Ostrobothnia region.
Why is this such a big deal then? Well, there is currently no lithium mining done anywhere in the Europe, but the European Commission estimates the global demand for lithium to get 18 times bigger during the 2020s due to a rapid increase in electric car production, which makes countries all over Europe interested to begin the mining of lithium, but not all have as large lithium coverings or the resources as Finland. That is why all eyes regards to lithium mining in Europe is set on Finland.