Europe’s largest deposit of uncommon earth metals found in historic Norwegian volcano

What simply occurred? A discovery has been made inside an historic volcano in Europe that has main implications not only for the continent’s renewable energies trade, but additionally for the EU’s objective of lessening its reliance on China for uncommon earth deposits.

Norwegian mining firm Uncommon Earths Norway (REN) introduced that after three years of exploration, it has found Europe’s largest confirmed deposit of uncommon earth components.

REN stated that its Fen Carbonatite Advanced deposit within the southeast of Norway has an estimated 8.8 megatons of uncommon earth oxides with an affordable prospect for eventual financial extraction. Inside that deposit, there may be an estimated 1.5 million metric tons of magnet-related uncommon earths, which can be utilized in electrical motors and mills, in addition to different clear power applied sciences equivalent to wind generators. They’re additionally present in client electronics, medical units, contact screens, and extra.

“The useful resource estimate underscores the potential of the deposit to be a very transformative asset that may underpin a safe uncommon earths worth chain for Europe,” Uncommon Earths Norway CEO Alf Reistad stated in a press release.

Positioned southwest of Norway’s capital metropolis Oslo, close to Lake Norsjø, the advanced was the pipe of an lively volcano round 580 million years in the past, notes Stay Science. The higher a part of the volcano has since eroded away, exposing the 1.2-mile-in-diameter magma-filled pipe. REN says the magma, which has solidified into carbonatite, holds uncommon earth components equivalent to neodymium and praseodymium.

REN says the present work gives a mineral useful resource depth of 468 metres (1,535 toes) under imply sea stage, with deposits seemingly reaching as far down as 1,000 meters (3,300 toes) under sea stage.

The corporate expects that the event of latest mining strategies will improve the useful resource estimate. Exploration, improvement of latest applied sciences, and take a look at mining ought to result in an funding of NOK10 billion ($942 million) to develop the primary stage of mining inside 2030.

Most uncommon earth components are positioned in China. It is estimated that the nation accounts for 70% of the worldwide uncommon earth ore extraction, and 90% of the uncommon earth components are processed within the Asian nation.

Europe’s Important Uncooked Supplies Act goals to extract at the very least 10% of the EU’s annual demand for uncommon earths. REN says its discovery might cowl that quantity.

In 2022, European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen stated lithium and uncommon earths had been changing gasoline and oil on the coronary heart of the EU’s financial system, and that demand for the weather will improve fivefold by 2030. Whereas the clear power implications imply it is a good signal, the actual fact China dominates the market is a priority.