Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure a secure and sustainable supply of critical minerals for the UK economy; and whether such a plan will be published.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In July 2022, the Government published its first ever Critical Minerals Strategy, setting out our approach to improving the resilience of critical mineral supply chains. It will safeguard UK industry, support the energy transition and protect our national security. The strategy sets out how the Government will accelerate our domestic capabilities, collaborate with international partners and enhance international markets. The Government are planning to publish a Critical Minerals Refresh in Spring 2023 to reinforce the strategy, highlight its progress, and set out upcoming delivery milestones.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the proportion of the UK's supply of critical minerals in the next 10 years that will be met by recycling.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Critical Minerals Strategy seeks to promote a circular economy of critical minerals in the UK. Recycling rates vary significantly for different minerals. In the case of minerals for electrical vehicle batteries, end-of-life recycling is expected to provide less than 1% of UK demand in 2030. The opportunity improves by 2040: recycling is expected to account for 10-20% of battery mineral demand for electrical vehicles.
To promote recycling and recovery, the Government is funding the £30 million National Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Research (NICER) Programme, including a centre on technology metals. Defra expects to consult on regulations for electrical waste in 2023 and subsequently for end-of-life batteries.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to Britishvolt entering into administration, what steps they are taking to ensure the secure and sustainable supply of electric vehicle batteries to British manufacturers.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government remains committed to Levelling Up and is actively engaging with companies to secure investments that will ensure the UK remains a world leader in automotive manufacturing.
We continue to work through the Automotive Transition Fund (ATF) to progress plans to build a globally competitive electric vehicle supply chain in the UK, which includes unlocking private investment in gigafactories, battery material supply chains, motors, power electronics, and fuel cell systems.
We have invested record sums in battery R&D – last October we announced a record £211 million uplift for the Faraday Battery Challenge, which brought the overall budget of this ambitious programme to £541 million. We recently awarded £27.6 million from this funding to 17 UK projects to support innovation in EV battery technology.