Cornish miners hope to profit from the shift to electric cars
A domestic supply of lithium could help Britain’s carmakers survive
IN THE MIDDLE of the 19th century copper-miners at Wheal Clifford, now the site of picturesque ruins not far from Redruth in Cornwall, chanced upon waters rich with lithium. At the time there was no commercial use for the metal. The underground springs were a nuisance they had to work round. These days lithium is an essential component of the batteries that drive electric cars, and deposits across Cornwall are attracting prospectors. Locals hope for a revival of the county’s mining industry, two decades after its last metal mine closed.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Wheels within wheals”
Britain October 3rd 2020
- Britain’s mixed-race population blurs the lines of identity politics
- The battle over London’s road closures
- British universities may be particularly susceptible to covid-19
- Another promise to improve vocational education in Britain
- Cornish miners hope to profit from the shift to electric cars
- Rewilding in the Scottish Highlands
- The Tories launch a culture war
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