London-listed Pensana has signed a letter of intent with Yorkshire Energy Park (Yep) which ensures access to between 4 MW and 10 MW of low-carbon electricity.
Pensana will use the low-cost and resilient supply of low-carbon electricity to power the Saltend rare earth separation facility and then later to power the conversion of neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) oxide into magnet metal, making it the first in the world to use offshore wind to produce ultra-low carbon magnet metal.
Yep, which is located adjacent to Pensana’s site within the Saltend Chemicals Park, in the Hambur Free Port, will include up to 200 MW of battery storage in the deal.
Yep plans on connecting 7 GW of offshore wind to industrial consumers through large-scale batteries. The £200-million energy facility will take shape in stages over the next decade.
This while Pensana’s $195-million Saltend facility is being designed to produce 12 500 t/y of rare earth oxides, of which 4 500 to 5 000 t will be NdPr.
“Through the private wire connection to Yorkshire Energy Park, our aim is to become the world’s lowest carbon magnet metal producer, with Pensana becoming the first company globally to use offshore wind to produce ultra-low carbon magnet metal,” says Pensana chairperson Paul Atherley.
The deal bodes well with Pensana’s potential offtake partners in the automotive sector, who are placing increasing importance on the security of supply and low-embedded carbon in the supply chain.
Yep chairperson Chris Turner says Pensana’s rare earth processing hub will be the first globally to be powered by offshore wind and Yep stands ready to drive a zero-carbon energy future in the Humber estuary.