The trust mark technology was developed by SCI, an Australian scientific technology company that specialises in provenance verification technology.

SCI’s technology can identify the origin of lithium within a battery, down to the specific mine site.

A statement from the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) reported the development was inspired by a rise in consumers demanding responsible practices in their purchases.

“Cornish Lithium and SCI are hopeful their work will form a foundation for developing a transparent and accountable lithium supply chain for batteries in the UK,” Austrade stated.

Europe does not currently produce any commercially viable battery-grade lithium, but Cornish Lithium and a consortium of similar companies have sought to change that.

The Securing Domestic Lithium Supply Chain for UK (Li4UK) consortium aim to reach a feasible point of lithium production in the United Kindgom, and SCI’s technology has been one step in that journey.

“In the next stage, SCI plans to apply its scientific provenance verification technology TSW Trace to establish a reference database of all Cornwall-sourced lithium,” Austrade stated.

“The samples in the database would then be cross-referenced against lithium in the battery supply chain to verify its UK origin.”

Austrade also stated that the consortium had increased awareness in the region of the importance of local critical mineral production, and that SCI’s technology had again been pivotal in this.

“SCI is confident its technology will provide the appropriate level of precision to verify the origin and authenticity of lithium mined by Cornish Lithium,” Austrade stated.

“This will in turn meet the demands of consumers who are increasingly interested in where items and their components come from, and the impact of their purchase on people and the environment.”