PERTH (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Core Lithium has been accepted as a member of the European Battery Alliance (EBA250), providing a pathway for the company to grow its presence in the European market.

The EBA250 brings together more than 440 players from the European Commission (EU), interested EU countries, investment institutions and key industrial, innovation and academia stakeholders, with the aim of driving a competitive and sustainable battery industry in Europe by 2025.

The alliance’s goal is to capitalise on opportunities and capture a new market which could grow to be worth more than A$400-billion a year.

“The EBA250 is a unique meeting platform for industry participants and being a member will provide us with greater regulatory insights, market intelligence and all-important connections to business development contacts, as well as the Alliance’s funding and financial partners,” said Core MD Stephen Biggins.

“To date, the Asian markets have been the critical offtake partners of lithium production from Australia, however, as Core looks towards beginning our exports in 2022, we aim to be producing for a diversified portfolio of partners.

“Europe is focused on building sophisticated capabilities across the entire battery value chain, from raw and active materials through to cell manufacturing and machinery, battery pack systems, applications and recycling. It is a market emerging at just the right time for Core.”

Core’s acceptance into the EBA250 followed a recent non-binding offtake term sheet with Geneva-based Transamine  Trading for the supply of 50 000 t/y of lithium-rich spodumene concentrate over a five-year term from the Finniss lithium project, in the Northern Territory.

The term sheet is in addition to a binding offtake agreement for 75 000 t/y with Yahua.

A previously completed prefeasibility study into the Finniss project estimated a pre-production capital requirement of A$53.5-million to develop a one-million-tonne-a-year operation producing 225 000 t/y of lithium concentrate.