This follows Norge Mining’s 2021 announcement of the discovery
of more than 70 billion tonnes of phosphate rock in the Southwest
of Norway containing phosphate, titanium, and vanadium in one of
the most significant deposits of the EU Critical Raw Materials.
The European Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA) is pleased to
announce that it will support Norge Mining’s Norwegian-based sister
company Norge Mineraler AS in the exploration and production of
vanadium, phosphate and its subsequent derivative phosphorus, and
titanium in Norway. All these raw materials are included in the
European Union’s 2020 Critical Raw Materials list, highlighting
their strategic importance for a resilient European economy.
European production of these materials is critical to lowering
the increasing risks associated with imported supply, as well as
supporting Europe to achieve its 2050 net zero carbon emissions
target. Currently, China produces approximately 59% of the world’s
vanadium and 41% of titanium, while 34% of traded phosphate rock is
sourced from Morocco, according to the latest EU figures. Before
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Russia was the world’s largest
supplier of aerospace-grade titanium.
Norge Mineraler AS holds 61 exploration licences, totalling more
than 520 square kilometres in the Bjerkreim-Sokndal basin, located
in southwestern Norway. The area’s large deposits of high-grade raw
materials, and the company’s core focus on sustainable and
responsible mining, make the project fully aligned with ERMA’s
vision, as it will contributes to ensuring reliable, secure, and
sustainable access to raw materials as key enablers for a globally
competitive, green, and digital Europe.
Bernd Schäfer, CEO and Managing Director of EIT RawMaterials,
which manages ERMA, commented: “Europe is in an excellent position:
we can use our advantage in clean tech innovation and skills
development to turn the industry into a powerhouse of innovation
and change and, in doing so, achieve the highest social and
environmental standards for European mining, just as Norge
Mineraler AS is doing.”
“Raw materials have a huge impact on our energy and economic
security and are critical to securing our strategic autonomy. The
current geopolitical crisis and global supply chain disruptions are
a reminder that we need our own production, and this is of huge
urgency for leaders across the Continent.
In the coming decades, the transition to green energy will
significantly increase the global demand for vanadium, a material
that not only is in high demand by the steel industry but also has
great potential for sustaining clean technologies. Vanadium
batteries provide efficient power storage for renewable energy,
such as hydro, wind, and solar. By 2050, there will be a 173%
increase in the production of vanadium used in technologies
essential to a low-carbon future, according to the World Bank Group
report, ‘The Mineral Intensity of the Clean Energy Transition’.
Titanium, a strong, lightweight, and extremely resilient raw
material, is widely deployed in aerospace, aviation, and automotive
manufacturing. Phosphate is not only a key ingredient in
fertilisers, which makes it critical to food security of the planet
but is also increasingly used in LFP (lithium iron phosphate)
batteries for electric vehicles and in the production of white
phosphorous, another EU Critical Raw Material.
John Vergopoulos, Chairman of Norge Mineraler AS, commented:
“Raw materials are finally getting the attention they deserve, and
we are determined to help Europe secure a domestic supply of
responsibly sourced critical raw materials to enable its successful
transition to renewable energy sources. With the environment and
community at the top of our corporate agenda, we are proud that
Norge Mineraler AS is striving to meet the highest Environmental,
Social, and Governance (ESG) standards for mining vanadium,
phosphate, and titanium in Europe.”
Michael Wurmser, founder of Norge Mining Ltd, commented: "Today
we celebrate an important milestone for Europe's long-term access
to key raw materials for the energy transition and food security.
The support of the EU and its organisations ERMA and EIT
RawMaterials will enable Norge Mining to implement the relevant
projects, which can cost at least €2 billion. This makes
cooperation between public and private institutions in the
development of sustainable mining infrastructure in Europe all the
more important."
ENDS
Note for editors
Norway has significant, untapped mineral resources, and the
country generates almost 100% of its energy from sustainable
sources, reducing the carbon footprint of mining operations to a
minimum. Exploration drilling and analytics at Norge Mineraler AS’s
Storeknuten deposit put the estimated mineral resource at almost 1
billion tonnes which represents only about 1.4% of the total volume
of at least 70 billion tonnes of Norge Mining’s phosphate rock.
While the company will focus on the 410 million tonnes of
high-grade minerals, the vast reserves underline the potential for
Europe to have a steady and sustainably mined CRM supply for
decades to come. The mine is set to begin operation in 2027.
The company uses innovation and technology to minimise
environmental impact. It is also in collaboration and constant
communication with the local community through its Community
Liaison Officer, providing a clear and consistent approach to
maintain its Social License to Operate.
About the European Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA)
Metals, minerals, and advanced materials are the key enablers
for a globally competitive, green, and digital Europe. The European
Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA) contributes to ensuring reliable,
secure, and sustainable access to raw materials. ERMA’s vision is
to secure access to critical and strategic raw materials, advanced
materials, and processing know-how for EU Industrial Ecosystems.
The alliance brings together all relevant stakeholders, including
industrial actors along the value chain, Member States and regions,
trade unions, civil society, research and technology organisations,
investors, and NGOs. ERMA is managed by EIT RawMaterials, a
Knowledge and Innovation Community of the European Institute of
Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union.
erma.eu
About Norge Mining Ltd.
Norge Mining Ltd is an Anglo-Norwegian natural resources company
focused on mineral exploration in Norway. The Company’s Mineral
Resource Estimates from the Bjerkreim-Sokndal Exploration Project
have confirmed world-class deposits of the EU Critical Raw
Materials phosphate and vanadium along with large quantities of
titanium.
Norge Mining holds 61 exploration licences, totalling more than
520 square kilometres, in southwest Norway through its 100%-owned
Norwegian subsidiary, Norge Mineraler AS. The Company’s programme
of exploration work, building on earlier studies by the Geological
Survey of Norway (NGU), is now in the prefeasibility study
stage.
Founded in November 2018, the Company is headquartered in the UK
and its ambition is to become a substantial, sustainable, and
strategically important exploration and mining business focused on
Critical Raw Materials in Europe.
For further information, please visit www.norgemining.com
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230206005592/en/
Vanessa Lorenz, Head of Communications EIT RawMaterials
E: vanessa.lorenz@eitrawmaterials.eu M: + 49 174
2714312
Mark Court, Media Buchanan E: markc@buchanan.uk.com
M: +44 20 7466 5125
John Vergopoulos Norge Mining Ltd. E: jv@norgemining.com
M: +44 7951 967459