A huge underground deposit of high-grade phosphate rock has been discovered in Norway, containing enough minerals to meet global demand for fertilizers, solar panels, and electric car batteries for the next 100 years.
Norwegian mining companies say 70 billion tons of phosphate were found in southwestern Norway, alongside other minerals such as titanium and vanadium used in the aerospace and defense industries.
Phosphate rock is used to produce phosphorus, which is an important component of the fertilizer industry - 90% of the world's phosphate rock is used in agriculture. It is also used to produce lithium iron phosphate batteries for electric cars, solar panels and, to a lesser extent, semiconductors, and chips. The European Commission noted that all of these products are considered "strategically important" in the production of key technologies for green and digital transformation.
The Norwegian phosphate rock deposit is estimated to be worth at least 70 billion tons, close to the 71 billion tons of proven deposits worldwide that the U.S. Geological Survey will assess in 2021.
A report by the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies says the EU is almost entirely dependent on imports of phosphate ore from the rest of the world and that the EU should be concerned about the shortage.
The importance of this new discovery is further illustrated by an article in Nature warning that the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and resulting economic sanctions could lead to disruptions in phosphorus supplies. With the global economy using up to 50 million tons of phosphorus per year, it raises concerns about shortages of this important mineral, as reserves are slowly being depleted and held by only four or five large suppliers.
The refining of phosphorus is a highly carbon-intensive process, which is why much of the industry is located in China, Vietnam and Kazakhstan. But Norway will apply carbon capture and storage technology to the process to make it more environmentally friendly. Norway's Minister of Trade and Industry, Jan Christian Vestre said it is Norway's "obligation" to develop "the most sustainable mining industry in the world.
The rock extends 4,500 meters (2.7 miles) underground. It was impossible to drill at such a depth, so geologists assessed only a third of the volume, extending 1,500 meters down from the surface, where there are at least 70 billion tons of mineralized phosphate rock.
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