A new map showing the occurrences of critical raw materials in Europe has been released by the Minerals Resources Expert Group of EuroGeoSurveys. In particular, the Document shows European mineral deposits from the ProMine Mineral Deposit database as containing critical commodities, according to the list of critical raw materials of the European Commission. Europe’s industry and economy depends on a secure and good access to many commodities. In 2010, the European Commission identified 14 critical non energy non-agricultural raw materials. Criticality is based on both the scarcity of supply and the importance of the material to European industry. The list has been updated and expanded over time. Today, it includes the following critical materials: antimony, beryllium, boron, fluorspar, phosphate, gallium, germanium, graphite, indium, silicon, cobalt, coke, chrome magnesite, magnesium, niobium, platinum group metals, light and heavy rare earth elements and tungsten. Such list is deemed strategically important for many product areas, not least in environmental technology. Download the PDF of the Map More information about the Map:  ...

Brussels, 04 March 2016 Following the huge success of the European Intelligence Network on the Supply of Raw Materials (Minerals4EU) project, the “Minerals Intelligence Infrastructure for Europe” has been legally registered under the form of a Foundation on Friday 4th March 2016. The non-profit Minerals4EU Foundation overall scope is to provide a one-stop-shop to official and verified data, information and knowledge on mineral resources, and to act as contact point through which stakeholders can easily and transparently access its products and expertise. Among its main services, the Foundation will coordinate the development of the European Union Mineral Resources Knowledge Base infrastructure, in support to European Union affairs, policies and action programmes, and will provide the best available EU expertise and information based on the knowledge of its Members, composing the European Minerals Intelligence Network. Moreover, the Minerals4EU Foundation will respond to specific requests from the European Union, or will formulate proposals for actions of interest to the EU. The Foundation is governed by a Management Board overseeing the whole management of the organization and composed of both private and public sector key EU stakeholders representing the whole mineral resources value chain. It is expected that the services put in place will ultimately serve to boost EU economy and competitiveness in the field of Raw Materials. BACKGROUND The Minerals4EU project delivered a European Minerals Knowledge Data Platform (EU-MKDP). The Platform contains a Mineral Resources Database, Map Viewer, Foresight studies and the European Minerals Yearbook, first digital reliable source of information on minerals statistics and intelligence in Europe. More information at http://www.minerals4eu.eu EuroGeoSurveys – web: http://www.eurogeosurveys.org/ Email: claudia.delfini@eurogeosurveys.org francesca.siciliano@eurogeosurveys.org Phone: +32 2 888 75...

PRESS RELEASE RAW MATERIALS INTELLIGENCE TO SERVE STAKEHOLDERS NEEDS 4 February Primary and secondary Raw Materials are essential to Europe’s economy and growth. The Minerals Intelligence Capacity Analysis (MICA) Project responds to the need to build a Raw Materials Knowledge Base at EU level, contributing to past and ongoing efforts by several EU projects and as part of the transitional phase towards this goal. The MICA Partners gathered together for the first time at the Project kick-off meeting held in Copenhagen on the 2-4 February 2016. The overall objective of MICA is to provide stakeholders with the best possible information, in a seamless and flexible way using a Web-based platform, the European Union Raw Materials Intelligence Capacity Platform (EU-RMICP). To reach this ambitious goal, MICA brings together a multidisciplinary team of experts, from natural and technical to social sciences, to ensure that the raw materials intelligence is collected, stored and made accessible according to stakeholders needs. The kick-off meeting, which included Technical Workshops, aimed at presenting all the Work Packages under which the activities will be carried and it introduced all the partners involved. The EU representatives presented the relevant policy frameworks and their expectations from the project. In particular, Mr Slavko Solar from the European Commission DG GROW, said that it is expected that MICA will contribute to shape the EU policy on Raw Materials and will foster the cooperation among past, current and future projects tackling the same issues. The cooperation with the industry, the KIC Raw Materials and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) is also considered as essential during the project lifetime. Indeed, representatives of those parties are part of the Advisory Board of the MICA Project. Background The MICA Project is coordinated by the Geological Survey of Denmark and...

The Launch of the European Minerals Yearbook at the Raw Materials Diplomacy Dialogue between the EU and advanced mining...

PRESS RELEASE TAXPAYER FUNDED BOOST FOR EUROPEAN MINING INDUSTRY   Brussels, 15 October In the wake of global economic slowdown and collapsing commodity prices, mining companies and consumers of minerals need to be ever more cost conscious if they are to survive. On the 15th October, the European Minerals Yearbook, first digital reliable source of information on minerals statistics and intelligence in Europe, was officially launched at the “Raw Materials Diplomacy Dialogue between the EU and Advanced Mining Countries” organized by the European Commission DG GROW and EASME in Brussels. Including 40 European countries, 65 commodities from primary minerals with a focus on the twenty critical raw materials for the EU, covering a 10-year span for production and trade, the Yearbook is meant to reduce costs and risks, and secure sustained supplies for European industries in the mining and manufacturing sectors. This comprehensive database contains detailed production pan-European information, therefore providing a new tool to the industry and EU decision-makers which before had to rely on fragmented and/or non-official sources. As MEP Mr Andrejs Mamikins stated: “The European Minerals Yearbook is a great achievement. It could, for instance, reinvigorate also my home country Latvia’s economy through a more efficient extraction and subsequent use of natural resources. It could allow Europe to be much more self-sufficient and not overly dependent on the United States Geological Survey agency. It is my hope that the newest yearbook shall open a new page in Europe’s quest for increased competitiveness and prosperity”. In his speech, Mr David Mair, Director for Policy Support Coordination at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, strongly supported the strategic cooperation between the JRC and EuroGeoSurveys to transfer knowledge and scientific evidence into policy. The Yearbook information is intended to be used by...

On 15th October 2015, in Brussels, the first official European Minerals Yearbook will be launched in the frame of the next Raw Materials Diplomacy Dialogue between the EU and advanced mining countries event, organised by the European Commission’s DG Grow and EASME. The event will be opened by the DG GROW Director Mr. Gwenole Cozigou and by MEP Mr R. Buetikofer. Mr Andrew Bloodworth, Science Director for Minerals and Waste from the British Geological Survey will explain how this innovative comprehensive source of minerals statistics can facilitate for the first time the European Union decision-making on investment planning and can be used to benefit the European economy, industrial development and trade and the lives of European citizens. Alongside data for primary minerals, the European Minerals Yearbook includes available data for mineral-based waste generation, treatment and trade. It presents national level statistical data for 40 European countries for the last ten-year period 2004 to 2013. All the data are accessible digitally through the European Minerals Knowledge Data Platform and provide the resource potential of primary and secondary mineral sources in Europe. For more information please contact the EuroGeoSurveys Secretariat http://www.minerals4eu.eu/...