Powering the green revolution

“And this,” says Stewart Dickson, “is what it’s all about…”

We get out of his car and approach a crash barrier at the edge of a precipice.

Before us, a breathtaking view of Weardale and the North Pennines hills stretches for miles. Eastgate sits to the left, with Westgate to the right.

Below, just behind the River Wear, smothered by giant trees on either side, lies a derelict cement works and all its forlorn trimmings.

The ex-Blue Circle site closed in 2002, with the loss of 200 jobs, and its quarry, behind us, was used to film the television series Beowulf.

Stewart has been visiting this area for four years now and, as well as falling in love with the place, its beautiful surroundings and its people, he has become quite the expert.

He says: “The names Eastgate and Westgate date back to the gate entrances to the Durham Prince Bishops’ private hunting estate.”

We are, it has to be said, extremely fortunate with the weather and today’s view.

If there is another subject Stewart has become an expert on, it’s that Weardale has its own sub-climate.

Stewart has stood here before and struggled to see the crash barrier from a few feet away.

He is now always well-layered and prepared for anything.

Even, though, on a clear day like this, from the fields above, it is still impossible to grasp the scale of the operation ahead and the change it will bring at ground level.

It is so well hidden and unobtrusive, and Stewart plans to keep it that way.

He says: “The first time I came here, I actually drove over from the other side, through the Raby Estate, and I had to keep stopping, it was so arresting on the eyes.

“It was like a visual assault.

“It’s a privilege to operate here, but that comes with responsibility.

“It’s our responsibility to ensure it stays like this.

“And it will, because it’s a very low visual impact, low footprint operation, which is why we’re using boreholes and pipes which are hidden, so the scenery remains the same.

“I’ve got children, and I want them and their generation to be able to see this landscape and other landscapes like this.

“It’s a non-negotiable part of this project.”

At ground level, Weardale Lithium headquarters is a 28-acre wasteland which, it turns out, has been very wasted for too long.

Hidden from the A689, it is nothing more than a huge, flat, weed-strewn expanse of concrete.

A derelict farmhouse stands in the distance.

A bridge and gantry cross the River Wear – still standing and an instant attraction to Stewart and his team, and an integral part of their plans.

Existing boreholes sink into nearby fields.

It will be transformed into a continuous flow, lithium extraction demonstration plant, which will operate an end-to-end, integrated direct lithium extraction (DLE) and carbonisation process.

Stewart says it is the only one of its kind currently approved in this country, and is expected to produce battery grade lithium carbonate on-site.

The company has already awarded the contract to provide technology licensing and proprietary engineering design to multinational firm KBR, which has been involved in the extensive testing of different DLE technologies, undertaken by Weardale Lithium, to find the optimal way to extract lithium from the geothermal groundwaters beneath the North Pennine Orefield.

The first phase of the project, to process lithium brine mineral resources, will start here, creating 20 to 30 jobs, before an expansion to a full- scale production plant.

Stewart says: “This site has all the ingredients we need; power, water and an A-road, and it’s a coincidence to some degree that the cement works was here because of the processed limestone quarry up there.

“You’ve got a unique geological environment here with the granite.

“There are only two places in the country – here and Cornwall – that host lithium enriched geothermal groundwaters.

“So, it’s a very unique area, and it’s a unique place.

“It’s a special place too, because you’ve got the industrial heritage, which is going to create a foundation for our future green economy.

“There are a lot of very smart people in our team, and the companies we’re working with have done the preliminary detailed engineering for us.

“I’ve seen some of the work they do, and they’re the best in the business.

“We really have brought some of the top engineering names into this project, and a lot of the latest technology too.

“We live in an age where everything we do is digital or electrical, and increasingly so, so electric vehicles, battery energy storage systems in our homes and in the infrastructure of the country all require significant amounts of lithium.

“By 2030, it’s estimated we’ll need somewhere in the region of 80,000 tons of lithium carbonate per year – we currently produce none, and we’re 100 per cent reliant on imports.

“This is a mineral which is highly geopolitically charged, and China controls most of the production and refining.

“If we are to develop a resilient, secure, environmentally sensitive supply of lithium, this is a significant milestone for the UK’s electrification ambitions.”

He goes back to that first visit.

“I think, almost on day one, we dared to dream,” says Stewart.

He adds: “And in my head, standing here, you’re starting to envisage things – ‘well, we could put that over there, and that other here’.

“It came to life.

“But there was a lot of work to do; work on the boreholes, work on understanding the chemistry of the water, work on understanding the technologies required to extract the lithium from the water.

“We’ve had to put in a very detailed planning application for this site, which has been some two years in the making, and taken significant investment.

“It’s been a multi-million-pound investment to just get to the start line.”

We’re meeting the day after the company reached that starting line. Stewart was present at Durham County Council headquarters for the key meeting in which councillors gave their backing to the project, after some amendments during the application phase.

The project’s duration is for 15 years for the pilot plant, but the pipelines will be permanent. It was only a short wait before the unanimous verdict, but Stewart admitted feeling like an

expectant father as he sat in the council’s chambers.

He says: “I’ve invested a lot of money, time and effort, and I care deeply about this project.

“I’ve spent four years on it, and intend to spend many more on it too.

“So, it is kind of my baby and it was a big day.

“I was asked lots of thoughtful questions, and we were very pleased to get every singlecommittee vote.

“And then it was like, ‘this is our decision, get yourself away, get on with it’.

“With any planning application, there are a number of conditions, and we need to liaise with the council and satisfy them, which is normal.

“Then we have a few agreements to enter into with the council about how we fulfil the planning, which, again, is all perfectly normal for a large industrial project like this.

“That will take a little bit of time, and then we’ve got to start our phased execution.

“I’m hopeful we’ll be breaking ground sometime later this year.”

A former captain with the Yorkshire Regiment, Stewart has spent nearly two decades in the industry, working across the globe.

And although the family home is in Shropshire, he knows he will be spending even more time in this, now, his second home.

He says: “I’m a newcomer to the North East, and it wasn’t a place I knew well, but I had some understanding from my time in the army in Yorkshire.

“I have a great affinity with the focus and attitude of the region, and I like the unique characteristics people have in the North East.

“There is a hardworking, straight talking, get stuff done mentality, and I think that resonates deeply with the primary industries which we’re involved in now.

“It is great that this is a project the community wants.

“We’ve spent a long time talking to them.

“Industry is in their DNA, and we really wanted to make sure they knew what was going on and that they had their say.

“And we will continue to be transparent.”