MINEX Forum

Region: Europe

  • Germany and UK Sign Critical Minerals Agreement in Berlin as Post-Brexit Economic Partnership Deepens

    Germany and UK Sign Critical Minerals Agreement in Berlin as Post-Brexit Economic Partnership Deepens

    Germany and the United Kingdom are set to formalise a strategic agreement on rare earth minerals at a German-British economic forum in Berlin, as the two countries build on the framework established by the Kensington Agreement signed in July 2025 to deepen post-Brexit cooperation across defence, security and the economy.

    British Business Secretary Peter Kyle and German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche are due to sign the agreement, which the two ministers described in a joint statement as covering “collaboration across the entirety of the critical raw materials landscape.” The signing marks a concrete step in translating the Kensington Agreement’s broad ambitions into sector-specific industrial policy.

    Kyle, speaking to dpa ahead of the Berlin visit, framed critical minerals as central to both economic security and the growth sectors of the future. “Critical minerals underpin much of the economic security that we need,” he said, pointing to technology, medical equipment and other high-value industries as directly dependent on secure mineral supply. He acknowledged that while both Germany and the UK produce some rare earth minerals domestically, European output cannot match China’s scale — making coordinated action between allied nations essential. “By working together we can be compatible, and we can be strategic, and we can lay the foundations for long-term resilience,” he said, describing the bilateral relationship as “very instinctive.”

    The agreement builds on a period of intensified European engagement with the critical minerals challenge. The EU and the US signed a Critical Minerals Memorandum of Understanding and Action Plan last week. Germany also signed a separate strategic partnership with Brazil focused on rare earth supply earlier this month. The UK has bilateral minerals cooperation agreements with countries including Kazakhstan, Australia and Canada.

    Alongside the minerals agreement, the two countries announced plans to cooperate on artificial intelligence. The UK is joining the EU’s AI Champions initiative, and Kyle argued that Europe’s failure to produce a trillion-dollar technology company underscored the need for cross-border collaboration. “That spark has got to come from like-minded countries that share a sense of ambition,” he said.

  • Blue Moon Metals Approves $184 Million Norway Copper Mine and Eyes Tungsten Restart in Nevada as Western Supply Chain Strategy Takes Shape

    Blue Moon Metals Approves $184 Million Norway Copper Mine and Eyes Tungsten Restart in Nevada as Western Supply Chain Strategy Takes Shape

    Blue Moon Metals has approved construction of its Nussir copper-gold-silver mine in northern Norway and moved toward restarting the Springer tungsten mine in Nevada, pairing a final investment decision with a C$150 million equity raise as the company shifts from developer to builder across two continents.

    The Nussir project, located approximately 1,400 kilometres north of Oslo, locks in a 13-year mine plan for a 6,000-tonne-per-day underground operation with first production targeted for the third quarter of 2027. Total construction capital of $184 million will be funded through the equity raise alongside cash and undrawn capacity from the company’s existing $140 million project financing package. A feasibility study issued this month confirms measured and indicated resources of 28.72 million tonnes grading 1.02% copper, 0.12 grams gold per tonne and 12.3 grams silver — averaging a 1.2% copper-equivalent grade. The project carries an after-tax net present value of $235 million at an 8% discount rate and an internal rate of return of 19%, with annual free cash flow estimated at $77 million at consensus prices and $125 million at spot. Blue Moon targets approximately 19,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate annually from the second half of 2027.

    Nussir benefits from infrastructure that many greenfield projects lack: ore will be processed at the brownfield Øyen industrial site, the mine connects to a 132-kV renewable power grid and ships through an ice-free port. It already holds its operating licence, tailings permit and zoning plan.

    The more strategically ambitious dimension of Blue Moon’s portfolio lies in its US critical minerals assets. The company acquired the Springer tungsten mine in Nevada in February and has now approved a restart programme targeting production by the fourth quarter of 2027, with approximately $50 million of restart capital required. Internal modelling points to between 107,000 and 124,000 tonnes of concentrate, which the company says could make Springer the only major tungsten producer in North America. Blue Moon is also developing the Blue Moon gallium-germanium deposit in California and the Apex deposit in Utah, positioning the three assets as a western supply chain for minerals where China’s dominance is near-total.

    Blue Moon cited figures showing China, Russia and North Korea account for 87% of global tungsten output, China produces approximately 95% of gallium and supplies roughly 75% of germanium. Tungsten prices have surged from $500 to $3,000 per tonne over seven months. Canaccord Genuity analyst William Jones, in an April tungsten industry report, described the supply chain as tightly concentrated and forecast structural deficits through 2030, noting that Western economies remain heavily import-dependent and often rely on Chinese-processed material even where ore is mined domestically.

    The Springer restart was approved without a current feasibility study or current mineral reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability, and Blue Moon cautioned that the 2012 historical resource estimate of 322,050 indicated tonnes grading 0.537% tungsten trioxide should not be relied upon as current.

  • Czech Companies Expand Kazakhstan Footprint With Car Assembly, Heat Exchangers and Uranium Talks Across Six New Agreements

    Czech Companies Expand Kazakhstan Footprint With Car Assembly, Heat Exchangers and Uranium Talks Across Six New Agreements

    Czech businesses are broadening their industrial and energy presence in Kazakhstan, with projects spanning vehicle assembly, manufacturing and nuclear fuel supply taking shape as bilateral economic ties deepen.

    Škoda Auto is advancing an $8.2 million initiative to assemble vehicles locally in Kazakhstan, while industrial company BBS plans to launch heat exchanger production by the end of 2026 with an estimated investment of $9 million. Both projects reflect a wider pattern of Czech industrial firms seeking manufacturing footholds in Kazakhstan’s growing economy.

    In the energy sector, Czech utility giant ČEZ Group is exploring long-term collaboration with Kazatomprom, Kazakhstan’s national nuclear company, including uranium supply agreements previously signed between the two parties. The talks come as European utilities accelerate efforts to diversify uranium procurement away from Russian suppliers following the war in Ukraine.

    Six cooperation agreements were signed between Kazakh and Czech companies at the forum, covering potential joint ventures in energy, transport, machinery production and insurance — a signal of broadening commercial ambition beyond individual project deals.

    Officials noted that growing Czech interest is contributing to a broader uptick in foreign direct investment in Kazakhstan, which rose 14.4% in 2025 to $20.5 billion, with a significant portion directed toward new greenfield projects.

  • German Lignite Operator LEAG Pushes to Suspend Coal Phase-Out and Exit EU Carbon Market as Iran War Reshapes Energy Calculus

    Eastern Germany’s largest lignite plant operator LEAG is lobbying state governments in Brandenburg and Saxony to keep domestic coal production running beyond planned phase-out timelines, arguing that the energy crisis triggered by the Iran war has fundamentally altered the conditions under which Germany’s coal exit was agreed.

    According to an internal company presentation reported by business weekly WirtschaftsWoche, LEAG is positioning lignite as a cheap, domestically available alternative to fossil fuel imports disrupted by damage to Persian Gulf energy infrastructure and trade routes. The document, prepared as a briefing ahead of talks with eastern German coal state governments, describes lignite power production as a potentially cost-competitive energy source capable of bolstering Germany’s energy security — but one rendered artificially uncompetitive solely by carbon prices under the EU’s Emissions Trading System.

    LEAG’s proposals include excluding lignite-fired power plants from the ETS for a predetermined period, placing selected plants on security standby while mining continues, and introducing an industry power price that could be set at approximately half the market rate if the state absorbs carbon costs. The company did not deny the reports but described its discussions with state governments as routine engagement ahead of a planned summer monitoring report on Germany’s coal phase-out. It added that the Iran conflict had created “changed framework conditions” that make fresh talks “absolutely necessary.”

    The push finds some political sympathy. Chancellor Friedrich Merz said after the outbreak of the Iran war that Germany may need to delay the closure of individual coal plants in the event of supply shortages. The state governments in Brandenburg and Saxony acknowledged they hold regular talks with LEAG, which is a major employer in their coal mining regions, without confirming receipt of the specific proposals.

    The initiative sits awkwardly against the financial commitments already made around the phase-out. LEAG is set to receive up to 1.75 billion euros under Germany’s coal phase-out law to transition its business toward climate-neutral energy production, while the states themselves are in line for billions of euros in structural adjustment funding ahead of the 2038 phase-out deadline. Removing lignite from the ETS would work directly against one of the trading system’s primary objectives — pushing polluting and inefficient plants out of the market — while market dynamics alone could make coal-fired power generation economically unviable well before 2038, researchers have noted.

    In western Germany, RWE has agreed to end coal-fired power production by 2030, conditional on sufficient backup capacity being installed. The federal economy ministry confirmed on Monday that it had contributed more than a third of 240 million euros in transformation investments in North Rhine-Westphalia, covering battery production and recycling facilities among other projects.

    LEAG’s owner, Czech investor Daniel Kretinsky, has previously criticised the EU’s carbon pricing scheme. The company said that if none of its proposals are accepted, it would consider closing its least efficient plants ahead of schedule.

  • Critical Metals Proposes $835 Million All-Stock Acquisition of European Lithium to Consolidate Full Ownership of Greenland Rare Earth Project

    Critical Metals Proposes $835 Million All-Stock Acquisition of European Lithium to Consolidate Full Ownership of Greenland Rare Earth Project

    Critical Metals has proposed to acquire Australian-listed European Lithium in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $835 million, in a deal designed to consolidate full ownership of its Tanbreez rare earth project in Greenland while eliminating its largest shareholder from its register.

    Under a letter of intent announced on Monday, Critical Metals is offering 0.035 of a common share for each European Lithium share, based on closing prices and exchange rates on 22 April. Shares in Critical Metals rose 5% on the announcement, lifting its market capitalisation to $1.5 billion. The company described the combination as a logical transaction that creates minimal dilution for its own shareholders while increasing its public float.

    European Lithium currently owns approximately 34% of Critical Metals’ outstanding shares, which carried a market value of $540 million as of 22 April. Upon completion of the deal, Critical Metals intends to cancel those shares — removing a dominant holder from its register and, the company says, making it more attractive to future strategic investors and potential acquirers.

    The transaction would also transfer to Critical Metals the remaining 7.5% interest in Tanbreez previously held by European Lithium, bringing its ownership of the project to 100%. Critical Metals secured a 92.5% stake last October and received Greenland government approval for the indirect licence transfer shortly before the deal announcement.

    Located at Killavaat Alannguat in southern Greenland, Tanbreez is regarded as one of the largest undeveloped heavy rare earth assets outside China. A preliminary economic assessment estimated a project value of $3 billion based on a 4.7 billion tonne resource across two deposits. Offtake agreements have already been secured for three-quarters of future production, and the project has been lined up for $120 million in US Export-Import Bank financing. Critical Metals is targeting first ore production in the fourth quarter of 2028 or the first quarter of 2029.

  • Boliden Beats Earnings Forecasts Despite Garpenberg Seismic Damage as Zinc Mine Faces Extended Capacity Constraints Through 2027

    Boliden Beats Earnings Forecasts Despite Garpenberg Seismic Damage as Zinc Mine Faces Extended Capacity Constraints Through 2027

    Swedish mining group Boliden has reported first-quarter adjusted earnings well above analyst expectations despite a production halt and significant damage at its Garpenberg zinc mine caused by abnormal seismic activity in March — though the incident has left a lasting mark on the mine’s output capacity that will extend into 2027.

    The company’s quarterly operating profit, excluding a revaluation of process inventory, rose to 4.4 billion Swedish crowns ($475.7 million) from 2.6 billion crowns in the same period last year, beating an analyst consensus of 4.06 billion crowns. The strong result was supported in part by record high gold prices, which at times exceeded $5,000 per ounce during the January to March period, boosting by-product precious metals revenue from Boliden’s mining and smelting operations.

    Garpenberg, one of Boliden’s largest and most strategically important mines and a key source of zinc and silver concentrates, suffered a production halt following the seismic event. The company confirmed that production will resume in the second quarter but at a low pace, with milled volume guidance for the mine reduced to 1.5 million tonnes and zinc grade revised down to 2.7%. Silver grade guidance was nudged up to 100 grams per tonne from 95 grams per tonne. Looking further ahead, 2027 milled volume is now estimated at 2.3 million tonnes — below previous capacity levels.

    Despite the setback, Boliden said its plan to invest in a new hoist at Garpenberg remains in place, with an ambition to reach production of 4.5 million tonnes by 2032, though the company cautioned that this guidance remains preliminary given significant uncertainties. Overall investment plans for 2026 were reiterated without change.

  • Turkey to Launch Critical Minerals Roadmap With Beylikova Rare Earth Project at Its Core, Minister Announces

    Turkey to Launch Critical Minerals Roadmap With Beylikova Rare Earth Project at Its Core, Minister Announces

    Turkey is preparing to officially unveil its Critical Raw Materials strategy in the coming weeks, with the Beylikova rare earth elements project positioned as the centrepiece of a national vision that links mineral extraction to deep processing and high-technology industrial development, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has announced.

    Speaking on 28 April at the OECD Critical Minerals Forum in Istanbul, part of the OECD Emerging Markets Forum Series, Bayraktar described Beylikova as potentially one of the largest rare earth element deposits in the world. State mining company Eti Maden is working intensively with partners to establish a full value chain at the site, and a pilot plant is already operational and moving toward industrial-scale production including separation and processing capabilities. “We will produce rare earth oxides needed for permanent magnets in wind turbines and electric vehicle motors,” Bayraktar said.

    The minister framed the forthcoming roadmap — based on findings from the 2025 Critical and Strategic Minerals Report — within Turkey’s broader energy transformation. More than 62% of the country’s installed electricity capacity already comes from renewable sources, and Turkey is targeting an expansion of wind and solar capacity to 120 gigawatts by 2035. Plans to build approximately 40 gigawatts of High Voltage Direct Current transmission lines to strengthen grid integration add further urgency to securing domestic critical mineral supply.

    “These represent a broad structural transformation, with critical minerals at its core,” Bayraktar said. “In this new era, it is not enough to have resources — you must be able to process them. Turkey is building exactly that, combining resource extraction with deep processing capacity and high-tech industrial value creation.”

  • Turkish Coal Miners Detained on Hunger Strike After Marching to Ankara Over Five Months of Unpaid Wages

    Turkish Coal Miners Detained on Hunger Strike After Marching to Ankara Over Five Months of Unpaid Wages

    More than 110 coal miners from Doruk Madencilik were detained and subsequently launched a hunger strike outside Turkey’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources on Tuesday after a weeks-long march to Ankara ended in confrontation with police — the latest flashpoint in a deepening labour dispute over months of unpaid wages, denied compensation and what workers describe as dangerous working conditions.

    The miners, represented by the Independent Mine Workers’ Union, had begun their march on 11 April from the Mihalıççık district of Eskişehir province. Police detained union leader Gökay Çakır, organising specialist Başaran Aksu and 31 miners when the group attempted to reach the ministry building. The workers responded by banging their hard hats on the ground and whistling through the night, before 110 miners commenced a hunger strike outside the ministry the following morning. “We came to Ankara in our shrouds, we are here,” the union said in a statement. “We will not be deterred by detentions.”

    At the core of the dispute are approximately five months of unpaid salaries, as well as severance and notice pay the workers say has been withheld both before and after the mine was taken over by the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund — known as TMSF — in 2016, on alleged ties to the Gülenist organisation designated by the Turkish state as FETÖ. The mine was subsequently transferred to Yıldızlar SSS Holding in 2022, and according to the union, labour rights violations escalated sharply following that transfer. The workforce shrank from approximately 1,200 to between 250 and 300 workers as payment disruptions mounted.

    Beyond wages, the miners are demanding an end to what they describe as involuntary unpaid leave being imposed on current workers, reinstatement of employees dismissed for union activity, and the creation of a safe working environment compliant with occupational health and safety standards. Workers say the company is forcing them to use outdated equipment. The union also called for the mine’s nationalisation to secure long-term employment and operational sustainability.

    Yıldızlar SSS Holding, a family-owned conglomerate chaired by businessman Sebahattin Yıldız, operates across mining, energy and ceramics. Its subsidiaries include silver producer Eti Gümüş, Nesko Maden and Söğütsen Seramik.

  • Zinnwald Lithium Secures German Permit to Build Exploration Tunnel at 193 Million Tonne Lithium Project

    Zinnwald Lithium Secures German Permit to Build Exploration Tunnel at 193 Million Tonne Lithium Project

    Zinnwald Lithium has received a permit from the Saxon Mining Authority to construct an approximately one-kilometre exploration tunnel at its Zinnwald Lithium Project in Germany, clearing a significant regulatory hurdle for one of Europe’s most advanced hard-rock lithium developments.

    The permit, granted to the company’s German subsidiary Zinnwald Lithium GmbH, allows construction of a tunnel from a portal at the former Zinnwald Border Station site — a location that has been largely idle since the Czech Republic joined the Schengen area in 2007 — adjacent to federal highway B170 between the villages of Zinnwald and Altenberg. The tunnel is valid until 31 December 2027 and may be extended.

    The exploration tunnel is designed to gather geotechnical, seismic and hydrogeological data on the ore body and will enable the extraction of up to 2,000 tonnes of bulk samples for metallurgical testing and product qualification. According to the company’s pre-feasibility study published in March 2025, a portion of the tunnel alignment may be incorporated into permanent mine infrastructure subject to future regulatory approvals — a provision that could reduce construction costs and timelines if the project advances to production.

    The permit does not authorise mining operations. Commercial production from the deposit will require additional permits, including the completion of an environmental impact assessment and a public consultation process.

    The Zinnwald project hosts a measured and indicated mineral resource estimate of 193.5 million tonnes and a proven and probable reserve of 128.1 million tonnes, with the project targeting production of battery-grade lithium hydroxide. Chief executive Anton du Plessis described the permit as “an important step in the ongoing de-risking of the Zinnwald Lithium Project” following what he called a comprehensive submission process.

  • EU and US Sign Critical Minerals Partnership and Action Plan Covering Full Supply Chain From Exploration to Recycling

    EU and US Sign Critical Minerals Partnership and Action Plan Covering Full Supply Chain From Exploration to Recycling

    The European Union and the United States have formalised a strategic partnership on critical minerals, signing a Memorandum of Understanding and agreeing a joint Critical Minerals Action Plan in Washington DC that commits both sides to coordinated action across the full mineral value chain — from exploration and extraction through processing, refining, recycling and recovery.

    The MoU was signed by EU Trade and Economic Security Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while the accompanying Action Plan was set out by Šefčovič and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. Together, the two instruments formalise a partnership that traces its origins to commitments made at a Critical Minerals Ministerial meeting held in Washington on 4 February 2026, alongside Japan, and to a joint EU-US statement issued in August 2025.

    The MoU covers bilateral cooperation across the entire supply chain and encompasses support for innovation, investment and geological mapping, as well as both supply-side and demand-side measures. The Action Plan goes further, setting out a framework for exploring a broad range of trade policy instruments designed to reinforce coordinated international action. These include border-adjusted price floors — a mechanism that has been under active discussion among allied governments as a tool to protect non-Chinese producers from market distortion — alongside standards-based markets, price gap subsidies and offtake agreements.

    Cooperation under the Action Plan is also expected to extend to the development of common standards for mining, processing and recycling; joint research and innovation programmes; stockpiling strategies; and mechanisms for rapid response to supply disruptions. Both sides intend to advance the critical minerals agenda through relevant international forums including the G7 and the Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement, known as FORGE, with the Action Plan explicitly paving the way toward a possible plurilateral trade initiative with a wider group of like-minded partners.

    The agreement reflects the convergence of European and American concerns about the fragility of critical mineral supply chains and the dominant position China holds across multiple points of the value chain — from mining through processing and refining — for minerals essential to the energy transition, advanced manufacturing and defence.