Finnish mining and battery chemical company Keliber has signed a deal with concrete company Betolar and JA-KO Betoni to deploy the Geoprime solution to cut carbon emissions at its open pit mining and underground lithium mine in Kaustinen, Finland.

The company said the Geoprime solution will replace cement used as a binder in concrete production with blast furnace slag produced through a steel industry side stream Raahe, Finland.

It explained that replacing cement will significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions; low-carbon concrete can be used in the structures of mines.

Innovation director and co-founder, Betolar, Juha Leppänen said the solution will lead to significant environmental benefits" by replacing cement with refined materials from industrial side streams, which will cut emissions by as much as one-fifth.

Hannu Hautala, chief executive officer, Keliber, also commented, "We wanted to ensure well in advance that the environmental impact of our lithium mines will be as low as possible.

"Our future side streams will not only be environmentally safe but will also enable the creation of new products and reduction of the use of virgin raw materials."

Jaakko Eloranta, chief executive officer, JA-KO BetoniBetolar, Keliber - JA-KO Betoni, said the concrete industry needs "new solutions to reduce emissions" and that the company is aiming to produce more "environmentally-friendly" products.

Kaustinen has a targeted average production volume of 140,000 tonnes per year of spodumene, and 15,000 t/yr of battery-grade lithium hydroxide.