Exeter centre gets £4.5m to speed up minerals mining

More than £4m is being spent on speeding up the mining of "critical" minerals in Devon and Cornwall.

A new Green Economy Centre at the University of Exeter is getting £4.5m to accelerate the mining of lithium, tin, and tungsten in both counties, said UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

"Lithium, tin and tungsten will play a key role in the growing green economy, particularly digital technologies and advanced manufacturing," said UKRI, the UK's national funding agency for science and research.

The cash is part of a £25m investment by UKRI to establish five new green industry centres across the UK.

The UKRI estimates that 3,000 jobs could be created in Devon and Cornwall through mining of the minerals.

The International Energy Agency estimates that up to 40 times more lithium may be needed by 2040 than is presently produced each year, said the UKRI.

Frances Wall, lead investigator for the Exeter centre, said it was a "wonderful opportunity to focus on helping our industry colleagues accelerate all the businesses in the region related to critical minerals".

The new centre is a collaborative effort involving businesses like Cornwall Resources Limited, Petrolab, and Geolorn, as well as local government bodies.