GSI Discovers Lithium Resources in J&K

Context

Recently, lithium inferred resources (G3) of 5.9 million tonnes have been established in the Salal-Haimana area of Reasi District of Jammu and Kashmir by the Geological Survey of India (GSI).

• These resources have been established as part of the “Reasi Sersandu-Kherikot-Rahotkot-Darabi” mineral block.

Probable Question

Explain the significance of Lithium ‘inferred’ resources that were recently discovered in Jammu and Kashmir. (150 words, 10 marks)

Highlights of the Recent Finding

• The finds include lithium, bauxite (the ore for aluminum), and rare earth elements.
• There are two caveats with the latest lithium find such as first, the new find is categorized as “inferred” and second, the lithium found in J&K.

About Inferred Resources

• The term “inferred” is one of three categories that mineral resources are subdivided into, in order of increasing geological confidence.
• The “inferred” mineral resource is the portion of a mineral resource that can only be estimated with a low degree of certainty in terms of quantity, grade, and mineral content.
• It is based on data collected from sites like outcrops, trenches, pits, workings, and drill holes, which may be of varying quality and lesser dependability than geological evidence.
• The system is based on the United Nations Framework for Classification for Solid Fuels and Mineral Commodities Reserves and Resources (UNFC 1997).

About Lithium

• Lithium (Li) is a chemical element with atomic number 3. 
• It is a soft, silvery-white metal that is highly reactive and flammable. Thus it is also known as ‘white gold’.
• Significance: This is part of a concerted domestic exploration push for the alkali metal, a vital ingredient of the Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries that power electric vehicles (EVs), laptops, and mobile phones. 

Lithium in India

• India currently imports all its lithium needs. 
• China is a major source of lithium-ion energy storage products being imported into India.
• Over 165 crore lithium batteries are estimated to have been imported into India between FY17 and FY20 at an estimated import bill of upwards of $3.3 billion.
• Thus to reduce dependence on China, domestic exploration is pushed that includes exploratory work to extract lithium from the brine pools of Rajasthan and Gujarat and the mica belts of Odisha and Chhattisgarh
• The move to ink sourcing pacts for lithium is seen as another salvo in the front against imports from China, the major source of both the raw material and cells. 
• During the last five years, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) has carried out 14 projects on lithium and associated elements, of which five projects on lithium and associated minerals were taken up in 2021-22.
• 2023 is likely to be an inflection point for battery technology, with several potential improvements to the Li-ion technology.

Potential Lithium reserves in India

• Mica belts in brines of Sambhar and Pachpadra areas in Rajasthan, Bihar, and Andhra Pradesh.
• Rann of Kutch, Gujarat.
• The pegmatite belts in Odisha, Chhattisgarh.
• Rock mining is being undertaken at Mandya, Karnataka.

Way Forward

At present, the Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD), an arm of the Department of Atomic Energy, has been carrying out exploration.

• The survey is both on the surface and some subsurface exploration, to augment lithium resources in the potential geological domains of the country.

News Source: The Indian Express

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/lithium-inferred-in-jk-how-significant-is-this-find-what-next-8437757/

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