UK funds satellite hunt for new minerals – by Barbara Lewis (Reuters U.K. – January 25, 2018)

https://uk.reuters.com/

LONDON (Reuters) – The British government has handed out 850,000 pounds for research that uses satellites to identify deposits of minerals, including battery metal lithium, as part of efforts to bolster the economy after the exit from the European Union.

The project named the Satellite Applications Catapult is seeking to assess the quality of mineral structures, to ensure exploration spending is focused on the best deposits, by analysing satellite images of geology and vegetation, British miner Cornish Lithium, which is participating, said.

Others involved in the project include the British Geological Survey, the Camborne School of Mines, which is part of Exeter University, and environmental consultancy North Coast Consulting.

“We are very pleased with the results so far and we believe this research could lead to ground-breaking satellite applications for the exploration and mining industry,” Jeremy Wrathall, CEO of Cornish Lithium, which seeks to extract lithium from brine in Cornwall, southwestern England, told Reuters in an interview.

Full results from the project should be known in March, he said. The British government is counting on a low-carbon car industry to help shore up the economy after the country leaves the European Union.

For the rest of this article: https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-cornishlithium-britain/uk-funds-satellite-hunt-for-new-minerals-idUKKBN1FE0L8