Arctic Sweden has huge deposits of rare earth metals

KIRUNA, Sweden (AP) — Iron-ore miner LKAB said Thursday that it has identified “significant deposits” of rare earth elements in Arctic Sweden that are essential for the manufacture of electric vehicles and wind turbines.

The Swedish government-owned mining company Kiruna mines ironore, about 960km (nearly 600miles) north from Stockholm. They claim that there are over 1,000,000 tons of rare earth compounds.

“This is the largest known deposit of rare earth elements in our part of the world, and it could become a significant building block for producing the critical raw materials that are absolutely crucial to enable the green transition,” said LKAB CEO Jan Moström. “Without mines, there can be no electric vehicles.”

Ebba Busch, Sweden’s minister in charge of energy and business, said that “electrification, the EU’s self-sufficiency and independence from Russia and China will begin in the mine.”

”We need to strengthen industrial value chains in Europe and create real opportunities for the electrification of our societies. Politics must give the industry the conditions to switch to green and fossil-free production,” she added.

Rare earths are now found in almost every aspect of our lives, from cell phones and hard drives to elevators and trains. They are vital for the rapidly-growing green energy field, which feeds wind turbines and electric cars engines.

Even if permits arrive quickly, exploration will take years to begin.