Norway has discovered significant reserves of metals and minerals in the sea
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Norwegian researchers have discovered deposits with significant reserves of metals and minerals in the depths of the country’s continental shelf, transmits Reuters, citing a statement from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), which conducted the study.
In remote areas of the Norwegian and Greenland Seas, there are, according to preliminary estimates, 38 million tons of copper and 45 million tons of zinc. Manganese crusts grown on bedrock over millions of years also contain 24 million tons of magnesium and 3.1 million tons of cobalt.
In addition, manganese crusts may contain other and rare earth metals, such as neodymium, yttrium and dysprosium. These metals are important in the manufacture of wind turbines and electric vehicle engines, the NPD stressed. They also clarified that further research is needed to find out how much deposits can be mined with an acceptable level of environmental impact.
Ecologists, the agency notes, have already urged Norway to postpone exploration of minerals on the seabed until the living organisms living there and the impact of mining on them are established.
Earlier in January, it became known that the Swedish state-owned mining company LKAB found in the Kiruna region, Europe’s largest deposit of rare earth metals. LKAB has estimated the reserves of the new deposit at more than a million tons of oxides of rare earth elements. Jan Moström, CEO of the company, noted that this field can play a significant role in the production of materials that provide a green transition.
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