Finance
Imerys freezes UK lithium project to focus on France
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 19, 2026
2 min readLast updated: February 19, 2026
Quick Summary
Imerys has paused its UK lithium project in Cornwall to focus on France’s Emili venture. Backed by a €50m state investment, Emili targets 34,000 t/y of lithium hydroxide from 2030; no restart date was given for the UK project.
Imerys Puts UK Lithium Plan on Ice, Prioritizes Advanced French Project
Imerys Refocuses Lithium Investments
PARIS, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Imerys has frozen its project to develop lithium production in Britain to focus on a more advanced venture in France, the minerals group said on Thursday.
The Imerys British Lithium project in Cornwall, southwest England, has aimed to produce over 20,000 metric tons annually of lithium carbonate and potentially meet lithium demand for around 500,000 electric vehicles.
UK Project Placed on Care and Maintenance
Reporting annual results, Imerys said it was placing the project on care and maintenance, suspending active development.
CEO Rationale and Strategy
"We realised that managing two projects of this scale in two countries at the same time is a lot," CEO Alessandro Dazza told reporters on a call. "We are going to focus on France where we're more advanced."
Target output: 34,000 t/y
French EMILI Project Backed by State
Imerys said last week that the French state would invest 50 million euros ($59 million) for a minority stake in the Emili project in central France, which is targetting output of 34,000 tons a year of lithium hydroxide from 2030.
Scoping Study Completed
Timeline and Outlook
Dazza declined to give a timeline for resuming the British project, which Imerys said remained strategically valuable after the recent completion of a scoping study.
Exchange Rate Note
($1 = 0.8500 euros)
(Reporting by Gus Trompiz. Editing by Mark Potter)
Key Takeaways
- •Imerys has suspended active development of its British Lithium project in Cornwall, placing it on care and maintenance.
- •The company is concentrating resources on the more advanced Emili lithium project in central France.
- •France will invest €50 million for a minority stake in Emili to support feasibility work.
- •Emili targets 34,000 tons per year of lithium hydroxide production starting in 2030.
- •No restart timeline was given for the UK project, which had completed a scoping study and aimed to supply lithium for ~500,000 EVs.
Frequently Asked Questions about Imerys freezes UK lithium project to focus on France
1What is the main topic?
Imerys has frozen development of its British Lithium project in Cornwall to focus on the more advanced Emili lithium project in central France, backed by a €50 million state investment.
2Why did Imerys pause the UK project?
The company said running two large projects in different countries simultaneously is challenging, so it will prioritize the more advanced French project while keeping the UK asset on care and maintenance.
3What is the Emili project’s production target and timeline?
Emili aims to produce about 34,000 tons of lithium hydroxide annually starting in 2030, supporting Europe’s EV battery supply chain.
