Written question WQ95263
- Asked by
- Janet Finch-SaundersConservative
- To be answered by
- Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 8 days
Question
What steps is the Welsh Government taking to extract cobalt in Wales, given that it is on the UK’s critical minerals list?
Answer
Answered by Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning
I have not made any assessment of the possibility of extracting Cobalt in Wales.
There is currently no mine production of Cobalt in the UK, and there are no deposits that have cobalt resources and reserves which are compliant with international reporting standards. It is therefore uncertain as to whether it is economically viable to extract.
If any planning applications to extract or process ores containing Cobalt come forward, they will be assessed against national and local planning policies.