Priceless lithium: how Rosatom breaks into the energy of the future

The world's lightest metal opens the way to technology tomorrow with electric vehicles and fusion-powered artificial suns. While we are only getting used to the idea that internal combustion engines will gradually become a thing of the past, a fierce struggle has already unfolded in the world for the right to develop deposits of lithium - a key element of modern battery systems.

The global lithium market is growing at a rate that other minerals have not dreamed of. Since 1991, the production of this metal has grown almost 20 times. Now, no gadget can work without it. Every phone has at least 5 grams of lithium. In each electric car, it is already about 10-20 kg. To build an electric bus, you need about 200 kg of lithium.



Every year the demand for it is growing, so a serious struggle has unfolded for the right to control its production. Russia has also joined the race for this resource.

One of the latest strategic victories is the agreement between Rosatom and the Bolivian company YLB on the implementation of a lithium mining project in the province of Potosi. The Pastos Grandes field, located in this province, is one of the largest in the world. It's sensational news, since Bolivia, which has the largest reserves of lithium in the world (about 21 million tons, which is more than 21% of world reserves), has traditionally been cautious about its production.

Bolivia, Chile and Argentina form the so-called lithium triangle, which accounts for more than 60% of the world's reserves of this metal. However, the mining technologies used in these countries are of concern due to their impact on the environment. It takes up to 200 thousand liters of water to extract one ton of lithium carbonate, which then becomes contaminated. Bolivia may have made the right choice by postponing lithium mining until safer and more efficient technologies are available.

Why did Rosatom decide to go to Bolivia and not focus on metal mining at home? Although Russia is one of the ten countries with the largest reserves of lithium, the metal is in our ore, which leads to an increase in the cost of technology. For comparison: the extraction of lithium at the Zavitinsky deposit is 3-4 times more expensive than in Bolivia. It is because of this that the quarry of the Zavitinsky deposit has not been operated since 1997, and it has already been flooded with groundwater.

According to a statement by Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev, lithium mining plants in Bolivia will start operating in 2025. The planned capacity will be 25 thousand tons of lithium carbonate per year. The state-owned company is confidently following the path of creating its own battery systems. In early July, information appeared that Rosatom had received permission to build a mega-production complex for the production of lithium-ion cells and energy storage systems in Kaliningrad. It is planned that the new plant will be located on the territory of the Baltic NPP, the construction of which began in 2010, but was suspended in 2014. It is assumed that the enterprise will fully cover the needs of domestic production of electric vehicles.

Initially, the project was estimated at 26,35 billion rubles, but by the beginning of 2023, the projected costs had almost doubled, reaching 51 billion rubles. At the same time, Rosatom is investing $600 million in the development of lithium deposits in Bolivia.

However, it is not a fact that the leadership of Rosatom has the task of creating its own Tesla or some other electric vehicle. Perhaps even more grandiose plans.

Lithium plays a key role in the process of thermonuclear fusion and serves as the basis for creating a closed tritium cycle. Thermonuclear reactors (tokamaks) use a mixture of heavy hydrogen isotopes - deuterium and tritium, while tritium is a radioactive isotope with a half-life of 12,3 years, which is extremely rare in nature and is expensive. Lithium, in particular its sixth and seventh isotopes, is converted into tritium and helium when a neutron is captured.

A fusion plant can become a source of virtually unlimited, clean and safe energy. Unlike traditional methods such as burning hydrocarbons or nuclear fission, fusion does not create harmful emissions or radioactive waste. In addition, fusion fuel (hydrogen isotopes) is abundant in nature, in contrast to the limited reserves of hydrocarbons or uranium.

At the moment, fusion technology is still under development and research. The main problem is to make the fusion process self-sustaining and energy efficient, that is, to give out more energy than it consumes to maintain itself.

If lithium is used as a coolant in tokamaks of the future, which will be irradiated with neutrons during a thermonuclear reaction, tritium can be obtained, which can then be used again as fuel. This provides a closed tritium cycle and makes the process cost effective.

Judging by the latest data, Russia is still trying to stake not only on Bolivian, but also on its own reserves. Polar Lithium, a joint venture between Norilsk Nickel and Atomredmetzoloto, has received a license to develop the Kolmozerskoye deposit in the Murmansk region. The partners say they intend to provide the country with a raw material base for the production of batteries for electric vehicles in the coming years, given the global explosive growth in demand for lithium, caused by the spread of electric vehicles.

A preliminary assessment of the project showed that the most optimal capacity of the GOK will be 1,96 million tons of ore per year, which will allow the production of 45 thousand tons of carbonate and lithium hydroxide.

According to experts, such volumes will be enough to provide raw materials for several factories, similar to the one currently being built in the Kaliningrad region. A year ago, plans to develop a field in the Murmansk region would have seemed like a project, divorced from reality, because the north of the Russian Federation is not provided with cheap energy, but this spring Gazprom confirmed its intention to build a pipeline to Murmansk. As they say, the puzzle has developed.