Finnish Battery Chemicals has filed the EIA report on battery materials production

Finnish Battery Chemicals Oy, a project company fully owned by Finnish Minerals Group, has filed the EIA report on battery materials production to the EIA procedure’s coordinating authority, the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centre) for Southeast Finland. The EIA report assessed the environmental impact of the production activities of a precursor cathode active material (pCAM) plant and a cathode active material (CAM) plant in Kymenlaakso, Finland. Next, the Southeast Finland ELY Centre will publish the report to obtain written opinions from the public and statements from the authorities.

The assessment data provided in the EIA report covers issues such as surface waters, the community structure and land use, vegetation, animals and environmental protection, and traffic. The criteria used to assess significance of impacts include the magnitude of change and the sensitivity of the receiving environment.

The following options are described in the EIA report:

• Option 1 (VE1) examines the placement of the pCAM and CAM plants in the Keltakallio area of Kotka.
• Option 2 (VE2) examines the placement of the pCAM plant in Hillonkylä, Hamina, and the placement of the CAM plant in Keltakallio, Kotka.
• Option 0 (VE0) is not to implement the project.

In addition to the potential locations of the plants, the options were examined on the basis of three production capacities: 20,000 t/a, 60,000 t/a, and 120,000 t/a.

Battery materials production is needed in the electrification of transport

Battery cells and materials are especially needed to manufacture lithium-ion batteries for electric cars. To date, various industrial companies have made plans for battery cell operations that correspond to the annual production of more than 500 GWh at the end of decade. This creates the need to develop European pCAM and CAM production activities, which are essential to battery cell production.

“Reducing emissions from traffic is important for climate change mitigation and improving the air quality. Our goal is to contribute to building a Finnish battery value chain that will promote the electrification of transport and, at the same time, create a new industry in Finland that supports economic growth responsibly,“ says Vesa Koivisto, SVP, Battery Value Chain at Finnish Minerals Group.

Public announcements and websites provide additional information

As required by the EIA procedure, the Southeast Finland ELY Centre will issue public announcements to collect written opinions on the EIA report prepared by Finnish Battery Chemicals and ask necessary statements from all relevant authorities. The ELY Centre will also provide information on the public event for the project in local newspapers and on their website at ymparisto.fi. Due to the coronavirus situation, the public event will be held in virtual format.

Finnish Battery Chemicals will report on its progress in the EIA procedure on the website of its parent company, Finnish Minerals Group, at mineralsgroup.fi.

More information for the media:
Vesa Koivisto, SVP, Battery Value Chain, +358 50 4536 322, vesa.koivisto(at)mineralsgroup.fi

Images:
Potential pCAM plant in Hamina (File: Hamina pCAM, JPG, 3,1 Mt)
Potential CAM plant in Kotka (File: Kotka CAM, JPG, 2,9 Mt)
Potential pCAM and CAM plants in Kotka (File: Kotka pCAM + CAM, JPG, 2,8 Mt)

Images are based on the largest capacity option 120,000 t/a.

Terms used in the text:
Precursor material – preliminary stage of the cathode active material used in lithium-ion batteries. Also referred to as precursor cathode active material, or pCAM.

Cathode active material – a powdery end product used to manufacture cathodes, the most valuable part of the battery cell, in cell plants. Abbreviated as CAM.

Read also:
First letters of intent for the industrial sites for battery material plants signed (9 Dec 2020)
EIA report in Finnish on the authority's website (11 Feb 2021)

The basic mission of Finnish Minerals Group is to responsibly maximise the value of Finnish minerals. We manage the state’s mining industry holdings and strive to develop the domestic value chain of lithium-ion batteries. In addition, we are engaged in long-term technology development in the mining and battery industries. Through our work, we contribute to Europe moving towards electric transport and a more sustainable future. www.mineralsgroup.fi