The UK’s first deep geothermal power plant – capable of generating baseload electricity and extracting battery-grade lithium – has been switched on at United Downs near Redruth in Cornwall.
The £50m ($67.09m) facility, developed by Geothermal Engineering, draws superheated water exceeding 190°C from the UK’s deepest borehole more than 5km underground. The heat is used to drive turbines that generate 3MW of continuous electricity. Octopus Energy has signed a long-term agreement to deliver the plant’s output into the national grid.
High lithium concentrations discovered during water testing have enabled co-production of up to 100t of zero-carbon lithium carbonate annually for use in electric vehicle batteries. The electricity generation process cools the geothermal brine to optimal temperatures for lithium extraction.
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The project highlights Cornwall’s granite geology and includes plans for site expansion, alongside two further developments targeting a combined 10MW of geothermal capacity and significantly increased lithium output.
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