British Geographical Society (BGS) geologists have mapped the UK’s potential areas for critical raw materials and thermal heat.

Areas from the Highlands to south-west England have the right geology to be prospective for several critical raw materials such as lithium and graphite, according to a BGS report.

BGS has produced a report identifying areas of the UK prospective for critical raw materials for the Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre (CMIC). It is a national-scale assessment of the geological potential for critical raw materials (CRMs) in the UK. It represents one of the first steps in the Government’s critical minerals strategy, which aims to make the UK more resilient to disruption in critical mineral supply chains by accelerating the growth of domestic capability.

CRMs are those minerals that are economically important, like those needed to make the batteries and semiconductors that are vital for the clean energy transition, and that are at the greatest risk of supply chain disruption. The UK has 18 metals and minerals on its CRM list, with another six materials classed as having elevated criticality. These are almost exclusively obtained from mining and refining operations in other countries, although tungsten has been mined in the UK in recent years.

The report’s authors stress that identifying an area as prospective does not necessarily mean it will be targeted for exploration and mining.

The BGS has also made a survey of areas where there is potential to use heat from deep thermal waters. Geothermal energy is the heat stored below the Earth’s surface. It has the potential to provide a stable supply of clean heat energy, helping to reduce carbon emissions, diversify from fossil fuels and improve domestic energy security.

Natural thermal springs have been used since Roman times and towns such as Bath and Buxton have grown up around them. These warm waters, which are rich in minerals, have travelled from great depth from a rock formation called the Carboniferous limestone, which can be found beneath many regions of the UK such as the Mendip Hills and the Peak District.

Now, the geothermal team at the BGS has mapped where the limestones are buried below the Earth’s surface at depths of over 4 km below the ground and have calculated that there is the potential to recover thermal heat of 106 to 222 GW from the rocks at depth under central and southern Britain. The largest potential resource is under the East Midlands and Greater Manchester, as well as the Humber and Cheshire regions.
Such energy has been successfully harvested for geothermal energy in Belgium and the Netherlands, where they are used to supply heat networks or heat agricultural greenhouses, lowering fuel bills for heating and the food industry.

Share Story: