- LKAB identifies over 1 million tonnes of resources
- The Company is applying for a concession to develop the site
- Mining of deposits still 10-15 years away
- Could reduce EU dependency on imports over time
KIRUNA, Sweden/STOCKHOLM, Jan 12 (Portal) – Swedish state-owned mining company LKAB announced on Thursday that it has identified more than 1 million tonnes of rare earth oxides in the Kiruna district in the country’s far north, the largest known deposit in Europe.
Rare earth minerals are essential to many high-tech manufacturing processes and are used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, portable electronics, microphones and speakers.
“This is good news, not only for LKAB, the region and the Swedish people, but also for Europe and the climate,” said Jan Mostrom, CEO of LKAB, in a statement.
“It could become an important building block for the production of critical raw materials that are absolutely crucial for the green transition,” he said.
Rare earth elements are not currently mined in Europe, making the region dependent on imports from other countries, while demand is expected to increase in the coming years due to the ramp-up of electric vehicles and renewable energy.
“Electrification, EU self-sufficiency and independence from Russia and China will start at the mine,” Minister for Energy, Economy and Industry Ebba Busch said in the statement.
Sweden currently holds the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union and is a country seen as an important part of the EU’s key minerals self-sufficiency strategy.
The European Commission considers rare earths to be one of the most critical resources for the region. The vast majority of rare earths are currently mined in China.
Nevertheless, the road to mining the deposit in Sweden is long.
LKAB said it plans to submit an application for a mining concession in 2023, but added that it would be at least 10 to 15 years before it could potentially start mining the deposit and shipping it to market.
The process of approving new mines is lengthy and demanding in the Nordic country, as operations often increase the risk of affecting water resources and biodiversity in the areas where they are located.
In addition, Erik Jonsson, senior geologist at the Geological Survey of Sweden’s Department of Mineral Resources, said that Europe currently lacks full-scale capacity to process rare earth metals and produce intermediates.
“Therefore, we also have to focus on the whole value chain of these metals, products like high-efficiency magnets that we want to use for wind turbines or traction motors in electric vehicles and so on,” Jonsson said.
Reporting by Johan Ahlander, Niklas Pollard and Marie Mannes in Stockholm and Jan Strupczewski in Kiruna; Adaptation by Anna Ringstrom and Conor Humphries
Our standards: The Trust Principles.