Cornish Tin granted royal permission to explore for gold as part of Cornwall’s mining revival
Cornish Tin granted royal permission to explore for gold as part of Cornwall’s mining revival
Cornish Tin has received permission from the King to explore for gold and silver as part of a revival of Cornwall’s mining industry.
The company said the Crown Estate, the monarchy’s land holdings portfolio, had granted it exclusive exploration rights to search for precious metals on 123,447 acres – or 14 percent – of Cornwall for six years.
The county has historically been a world leader in copper and tin production. The revival of the mining industry could boost employment in one of the UK’s most deprived regions.
Cornish Tin’s main purpose is to explore for lithium and tin, which are crucial to the transition to renewable energy and the production of mobile phone and electric car batteries.
The discovery of gold and silver would increase the funds available for his projects.
Approval: King Charles’s Crown Estate has granted Cornish Tin exclusive exploration rights to search for precious metals on 123,447 acres in Cornwall for six years
The Company already has exploration and extraction rights to search for tin and lithium over a 3,900-acre zone within the larger area announced today, including its flagship Great Wheal Vor project in the historic Breage mining district.
The UK imports all of its tin and lithium and companies are scrambling to ensure domestic supplies of the minerals.
Sally Norcross-Webb, chief executive of Cornish Tin, said: “Our world is one of conflict and disruption in the supply chains of minerals vital to British industry.”
All of the UK’s tin and lithium is imported and it is vital that the UK maintains its secure supply.”
Competitors such as Cornish Lithium, Cornish Metals, Imerys-British Lithium and Tungsten West are all focused on boosting the UK mining sector.
In August, Cornish Lithium secured a £53.6 million investment from the UK Infrastructure Bank.
Meanwhile, in June this year, British Lithium announced that it had teamed up with French company Imerys to open a mine in Cornwall that it said could produce enough lithium to power 500,000 electric cars by 2030.
Norcross-Webb, a mining and corporate finance lawyer, founded the company in 2017, making Cornish Tin a relatively new player in the emerging sector.
It will likely take five years to produce anything, with further fundraising and exploration on the agenda.
It has raised £2.8m and is seeking a further £3m to fund a second drilling program next year.