The Middle Eastern state of Jordan has announced plans to step up exploration for lithium, after initial tests indicated the country could be sitting on high levels of the metal.
The country’s energy and mineral resources minister, Saleh Al-Kharabsheh, said the move could help Jordan cash in as a supplier to battery makers for the growing electric vehicles market.
Al-Kharabsheh told Jordan’s official Petra news agency preliminary exploration in Al-Dubaidib, about 350km south of the capital Amman, “indicated the presence of high ratios of lithium and rare elements”.
Lithium extraction could also boost investment in the country’s economic development, the minister said.
Al-Kharabsheh said his department is in the process of submitting a tender to start drilling work and dig exploratory wells in the 900sq km study area. Detailed analysis could be ready by the start of next year, the minister said.
BBB reported earlier this month that Jordan’s government had agreed on proposals for a $40 million battery facility to push forward the country’s energy storage ambitions. Al-Kharabsheh told The Jordan Times the government had signed a memorandum of understanding with 23 international firms and consortia to build a battery storage facility with a capacity of “at least” 30MW “to help Jordan absorb more energy generated by renewable energy projects including solar and wind”.
