Swedish Economy and Energy Minister Ebba Busch
“It will play a key role in Europe’s green transition.”
(Photo: IMAGO/TT)
Stockholm The timing of the news announcement was certainly chosen carefully: Swedish state mining group LKAB discovered Europe’s largest deposit of rare earths, which are used in the production of electric cars and wind turbines, among other things. At the same time, the entire EU Commission is just a few kilometers away from the venue in Kiruna – at the start of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU.
“This is good news not only for LKAB, the region and Sweden, but also for Europe and the climate,” commented LKAB head Jan Moström on the discovery of more than a million tonnes of rare Lands. According to Mostom, it is the largest known occurrence in Europe to date.
Rare earths are special metals. Those chemical elements with such strange names as europium, lanthanum and neodymium, dysprosium or thulium are needed to make cell phones, televisions, computers, wind turbines, permanent magnets for electric motors.
Over 90 percent of all rare earths still come from China. To become more independent, new suppliers are being sought in various parts of the world. The rare earth deposit that has now been discovered near Kiruna, north of the Arctic Circle, “could become an important building block for the production of critical raw materials to enable the green transition,” explained Moström. And: “No mining, no electric cars.”
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To date, no rare earths have been mined in Europe. The region around Kiruna has been one of the biggest mining areas in Europe for many decades. Iron ore, from which the famous “Swedish steel” is made, has been mined here for a long time.
Also discovered larger deposits of phosphorus
It has been known for several decades that there are larger deposits of rare earths in northern Sweden. What is new, however, is the size of the deposit. And LKAB emphasizes that the “Per Geijer” deposit can host significantly more rare earths than the approximately one million tons that have been identified so far. “The site is not limited, we have only examined a small part so far,” Mostom told the TT news agency.
Record found in Sweden
LKAB chief Jan Moström and Swedish energy minister Ebba Busch jointly announced the record discovery of rare earths.
(Photo: IMAGO/TT)
In addition to finding large amounts of rare earths, the LKAB also discovered large deposits of phosphorus. Phosphorus is also one of the raw materials that the EU recently defined as critical. Because the chemical element is mainly needed in the production of food and fertilizer.
Although LKAB had known for a long time that there were rare earths in the region near Kiruna, in addition to large deposits of iron ore, production was considered too expensive and demand too low. But with the expansion of renewable energies and electric mobility, raw materials are in demand again.
Location is not limited, we have only examined a small part so far. Head of LKAB Jan Mostroem
Furthermore, the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine has shown the need to become less dependent on one or a few suppliers. In the past, China has repeatedly threatened restrictions on the export of rare earths, prices have sometimes increased significantly – but now they have normalized again.
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However, the EU Commission expects the demand for rare earths to increase fivefold by 2030. A large part of future demand could be met by Sweden. However, it will be many years before rare earths can be mined in Kiruna.
According to LKAB, a license for mining at a depth of around 700 meters is to be applied for this year, but LKAB boss Moström assumes that production cannot start for at least ten to 15 years. “If you look at the licensing processes in our industry, it takes a long time before we can actually start mining.” Conservation and environmental concerns and objections from reindeer herders can further delay the licensing process.
LKAB mine in Kiruna
Large amounts of rare earths are under the city of northern Sweden.
(Photo: IMAGO/TT)
However, Sweden’s Economy and Energy Minister Ebba Busch is optimistic. “It will play a key role in Europe’s green transition,” she said on Thursday. The EU Commission wants to provide more funding for mining projects like Kiruna in the future. In March this year, it intends to present the “Critical Raw Material Act”, which aims to guarantee access to critical raw materials. Among other things, companies can apply for financial assistance from Brussels.
More: “We need to diversify” – Australia presents itself as an alternative to China when it comes to commodities
