United Downs plant becomes Europe’s first for battery lithium

Deep under Cornwall, a geothermal power plant has quietly turned into something else too. GEL, the company behind the site at United Downs, has confirmed that its lithium carbonate now meets the international standard battery makers actually buy at, with no further refining needed before it can be sold on. It is being called a European first.

What ‘technical grade’ actually means

Independent analysis has shown that lithium carbonate produced from GEL’s deep geothermal brine now exceeds the 99.3% purity specification required to be classed as technical grade material. That threshold matters because it is the purity level battery producers themselves demand, giving GEL a direct route to market rather than having to send the product elsewhere for further refining first.

From 100 tonnes to 30,000 a year

The operational plant is now on its way to producing 100 tonnes of technical grade lithium carbonate a year. Production at United Downs is forecast to climb to around 2,000 tonnes annually by 2029, and as GEL brings further sites online, the company’s total anticipated production rises to over 30,000 tonnes a year by 2033. On its own, that would meet more than 60% of a government target.

That target comes from Westminster. Ministers have set a goal of meeting 10% of the UK’s critical mineral demands from domestic production by 2035, including at least 50,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate a year, and GEL expects to be central to reaching it.

A grant, and the people behind the numbers

Julian Hetherington MBE, Director of Automotive Transformation at the APC, which delivers the government’s DRIVE35 programme, welcomed the milestone. “United Downs shows the huge opportunity the UK has to build a domestic supply of lithium carbonate in a sustainable way,” Julian said. “It will strengthen the UK’s critical minerals supply chain and reindustrialise the country. DRIVE 35 is proud to have supported the project with a £1.8 million grant through our Automotive Transformation Fund, to help reach this important milestone. We look forward to continuing to work with GEL as it scales production across the UK.”

Dr Ryan Law, CEO of GEL, called it validation of the company’s technology. “Producing lithium carbonate that exceeds the purity specification for Technical Grade material is a major milestone for GEL,” Ryan said. “We are demonstrating that it is possible to produce a high-quality, saleable lithium product in the UK with the highest environmental standards, creating the potential for a more secure and sustainable domestic supply of this critical battery material. This achievement marks an important step in our journey from pioneering technological development to large scale production.”

One of the most sustainable lithium sources on the planet

GEL’s process pulls lithium straight out of the same deep geothermal brine the company already uses to generate electricity, rather than running extraction as a separate, energy-hungry process. Recent benchmarking studies have ranked lithium produced through GEL’s proprietary methods among the most sustainable anywhere in the world as a result.

Technical grade lithium carbonate is traded internationally, including through markets such as the Shanghai Metals Market. As of 20 August 2026 the reference price sat at around $22,000 a tonne. Production at United Downs began in February 2026, and GEL is aiming to establish a leading position in Europe’s emerging lithium industry.

From proving geothermal power to mining lithium

GEL was set up in 2008 to prove that geothermal power generation was possible in the UK, built around a team of geologists, engineers and community engagement specialists working on sustainable, baseload energy. The company has since branched out into zero carbon mineral production. Its flagship project remains United Downs, where it drilled more than 5km down and switched on power in 2024.

The company is backed by Thrive Renewables plc, ABN AMRO and Kerogen Capital. What started as a bet on Cornish geology and geothermal heat is now supplying the raw material for the batteries going into electric cars.

📷Credit: GEL