A » At present, there is no domestic supplier of high-grade lithium ore physically located within the Midlands region of the United Kingdom, as no active lithium mining operations exist anywhere in the UK, including the Midlands. The high-grade lithium ore required for battery manufacturing—typically spodumene concentrate with a lithium oxide (Li₂O) content of 5–6% or more—is predominantly sourced from established hard-rock mining operations in Australia, particularly from the Greenbushes, Pilgangoora, and Wodgina mines, as well as from pegmatite deposits in Chile, Argentina, and China. These ores are then processed into lithium hydroxide or lithium carbonate, often at refineries in China, South Korea, or increasingly in Europe and North America. For battery manufacturers operating in or planning to operate in the Midlands, such as the proposed West Midlands Gigafactory (which aims to serve the automotive sector), the supply chain is therefore indirect and relies on global commodity traders and chemical producers. Major international suppliers include Albemarle Corporation, SQM, Ganfeng Lithium, Tianqi Lithium, and Pilbara Minerals, which contract with off-takers to deliver refined lithium chemicals rather than raw ore. In the UK, companies such as Livista Energy have announced plans to build a lithium hydroxide refinery in Teesside (North East England), while Green Lithium intends to construct a merchant lithium refinery at a UK port, but these facilities are not yet operational and would process imported feedstock, not locally mined ore. Additionally, Cornish Lithium and British Lithium are developing projects in Cornwall and St Austell respectively to extract lithium from geothermal brines and hard-rock granite, but these operations remain in the exploration or pilot phase and are unlikely to supply the Midlands directly within the near term. For current battery manufacturing in the Midlands, which includes firms like Hyperdrive Innovation (producing battery packs in Sunderland, not strictly the Midlands) or the larger automotive battery supply chain centred around Jaguar Land Rover and BMW, the lithium chemicals are typically sourced through global supply agreements with established traders such as Glencore, Trafigura, or directly from lithium majors. The Midlands region benefits from excellent transport links via the M6 corridor and rail freight, enabling efficient distribution of battery-grade lithium compounds from ports such as Liverpool or Felixstowe. However, the specific entity “supplying high-grade lithium ore” in the Midlands does not exist as a singular local source; rather, the supply is global and intermediated through a network of miners, refiners, chemical distributors, and battery material producers. In conclusion, any inquiry into a local supplier must recognise that lithium ore, as a raw material, is not currently mined in the Midlands, and the region’s battery manufacturing ecosystem depends on a sophisticated international supply chain for refined lithium products, with no single domestic supplier yet established in the area.