The rising popularity of electric vehicles has significantly boosted the demand for nickel. While increasing mining activities is one approach to meet this demand, many innovative startups are now exploring sustainable alternatives, such as farming, to address industrial needs.
Historically, since the Industrial Age, mining has been the primary method to extract metals. This trend continues today, with the surge in electric vehicle adoption driving the demand for lithium, nickel, and cobalt to unprecedented levels. However, mining is not only energy-intensive but also heavily reliant on carbon-emitting fossil fuels, leading to substantial emissions. For instance, mining one tonne of nickel for an electric vehicle can produce up to 59 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
In response, startups are increasingly turning to phytomining—a process that uses plants to extract nickel from the soil. This method offers the dual benefit of avoiding traditional mining while still obtaining the necessary metals.
What is Phytomining?
Phytomining involves cultivating specific plant species that can absorb and concentrate metals from the soil. These plants are grown on land where the metal is present but not in high enough concentrations to justify mining. Once mature, the plants are harvested, dried, and heated to decompose the organic material, leaving behind ash from which the metal can be extracted.
This concept, though not entirely new, has evolved. In the past, similar methods have utilized microorganisms or plants to clean soil contaminants. Today, startups like Metalplant and Econik are applying phytomining on a large scale to sustainably source nickel. Another company, Viridian, has patented technology for plants that hyperaccumulate nickel.
For example, Odontarrhena decipiens, a plant species with distinctive yellow flowers, can accumulate up to 2 percent nickel in its biomass. According to Viridian, a 1,000-hectare farm could capture between 250-550 metric tons of nickel, valued between $3-7 million.
Cleaning Up Carbon
Metalplant is enhancing its phytomining efforts by integrating carbon sequestration. This involves using enhanced rock weathering, where rock dust is applied to the farms. As the dust dissolves, it absorbs CO2 from the atmosphere, forming bicarbonate, which can store the gas for millennia.
Sahit Muja, Metalplant’s co-founder and a mining billionaire, is utilizing olivine—a magnesium iron silicate from his nearby quarry—in the phytomining process at Tropojë in Albania. In June, the company applied several tonnes of olivine dust to its nickel-concentrating farms. This approach not only enhances plant yield but also sequesters approximately 200 tonnes of CO2 per hectare, potentially making nickel sourcing carbon-negative and helping EV manufacturers offset their production impact.
