Sweden finds Europe's largest deposit of rare earth metals, which could become 'more important than oil and gas'

State-owned Swedish mining institution LKAB said it has recovered what it believes to beryllium Europe's largest known deposit of uncommon world elements.

Located successful Kiruna, successful the acold northbound of Sweden, the institution said Thursday that the store contained much than 1 cardinal metric tons of uncommon world oxides.

These metals are utilized successful the manufacture of electrical cars and upwind turbines, arsenic good arsenic magnets, solid screens, speakers and assorted different electronics.

The find could pave the mode for uncommon world elements to commencement being mined successful Europe, with the portion presently wholly reliant connected imports from a marketplace dominated by China.

The European Union imports 99% of its uncommon world elements from the country, according to a 2020 report — and mining them person to location has been identified arsenic a cardinal extremity for the bloc.

In her 2022 State of the Union address, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said uncommon world elements, on with lithium which is besides utilized successful batteries, would "soon beryllium much important than lipid and gas." The EU expects request to summation fivefold by 2030.

Jan Moström, LKAB's main executive, called the find "good news, not lone for LKAB, the portion and the Swedish people, but besides for Europe and the climate."

However, the institution said the roadworthy to mining would beryllium "long," with an exploration licence inactive to beryllium submitted and respective much years of exploration needed to observe the afloat grade of the deposit.

"If we look astatine however different licence processes person worked wrong our industry, it volition beryllium astatine slightest 10-15 years earlier we tin really statesman mining and present earthy materials to the market," Moström said.

Last year, Politico reported that Swedish locals surviving adjacent imaginable sites and immoderate campaigners were acrophobic astir the imaginable interaction of mining successful the EU.