LevertonHELM Unveils £30 Million Lithium Plant Advancing UK Green Manufacturing

Image Credit: LevertonHELM

In a significant step toward bolstering Europe’s battery supply chain, LevertonHelm has unveiled a new £30 million (US$40 million) lithium chloride production facility in Basingstoke, UK. This move aims to secure a vital link in the electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem.

The facility, capable of producing 10,000 tonnes per year, converts lithium carbonate imported from South America into a 40% lithium chloride solution through a hydrochloric acid reaction. According to the company, this is now the largest lithium chloride plant in Europe. This bold claim underscores the scale and urgency of electrification.

The facility marks a more than threefold increase from the company’s existing 3,000 tonnes per year capacity in the UK, reflecting surging demand from automakers and the broader renewable energy sector seeking stable battery storage solutions.

“We are securing processing capacity in Europe and especially in the UK for a crucial element which is essential in the production of every EV,” said Stephan Schnabel, CEO of LevertonHelm’s parent company.

 At the launch, CTO Fernando Bautista-Parra hinted at what’s next. He noted that the emergence of solid-state battery technologies will only accelerate lithium chloride demand—a forward-looking bet the company seems well-positioned to win.

Designed by the engineering consultancy OLG, the plant currently employs 76 staff members. It replaces a smaller, manually operated setup also based in Basingstoke. The new system boasts enhanced automation, adding ph probes, inline densometers, and process scaling that boosts speed and precision. Following the current commissioning phase, full operations are expected to begin this June.

Ian Palmer, UK operations and engineering director, added, “We’re doing it on a bigger scale with newer equipment, which is more efficient and cost-effective.”

He added that the company has given a lot of attention to the safety and environmental aspects of the facility, and that the local water company wants others to visit the plant “to show them what good looks like.”

 Lithium demand is surging—fueled by EV adoption and nations investing in grid-scale storage to manage intermittent renewables. Yet while Australia, Chile, and China dominate global lithium production, around 60% of midstream processing happens in China—a concentration raising red flags.

With trade tensions simmering and China tightening exports of critical minerals, countries like the UK are rethinking supply chain resilience. Earlier this year, the UK’s Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre flagged lithium as a high-risk material, warning that domestic demand could require up to 40% of global supplies by 2030.

Asked whether LevertonHelm could use lithium from those sources, Palmer said: “If it’s lithium carbonate, there’s no reason why we can’t. Something like Cornish Lithium would be amazing, or Tees Valley Lithium. If we can keep it in the UK, I’m all for that, but it’s got to be at the right price.

“If we pay more for UK stock than we are for stock coming from Chile or China, then it’s not going to work.”

Efforts to localise production are already underway. Firms like Weardale Lithium and Cornish Lithium have been given the green light to pilot geothermal brine extraction, which is an early step toward a more self-reliant supply chain.

As debates around government subsidisation heat up, industry leaders say now is the time for bold action. After all, securing lithium isn’t just an economic imperative—it’s a climate one.