Metals One (MET1) has formally applied to the EU for Strategic Project designation for the company's Black Schist nickel-copper-cobalt-zinc project in Finland.
The application has been made pursuant to the Critical Raw Materials Act, which seeks to establish a framework for ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials, and follows the completion of a preliminary economic assessment.
Black Schist comprises the Rautavaara (R1) and Paltamo (P5) deposits in eastern Finland, near the regional mining centre of Sotkamo.
The project is located within the economically significant Kainuu schist belt, which hosts Talvivaara-style black schist mineralisation.
The company' plans to grow the resource base at Black Schist by refining a geological and geophysical prospectivity model, expanding and upgrading R1 and P5 through drilling, and identifying new targets.
For the purposes of designation under the Critical Raw Materials Act, the R1 deposit constitutes the Strategic Project core asset of the Black Schist project.
The designation is sought to support the advancement to the pre-feasibility study stage and subsequent permitting.
R1 has been prioritised based on its positive economics, its established resource, its proximity to established Finnish processing infrastructure and technical precedent, and its manageable environmental and permitting risks.
P5 is excluded from the initial Strategic Project scope and is considered a contingent, medium-term optional expansion subject to future optimisation and market conditions.
Negligible amounts of nickel are currently produced in Europe.
"Access to raw materials is essential for the EU's economy and the functioning of the internal market,” said Daniel Maling, managing director of Metals One.
“The Black Schist project is a multi-metal extraction project potentially contributing to the Union's security of supply for several strategic raw materials. Strategic Project designation would provide several key advantages that could aid in the project's development and long-term success, including but not limited to enhanced access to project financing, including eligibility for funding from EU programmes, and streamlined permitting processes. Given the key role of many critical raw materials in realising the green and digital transitions, and considering their use for defence and aerospace applications, demand is likely to increase exponentially in the coming decades. Further, risk of supply disruptions is increasing against the background of rising geopolitical tensions and resource competition.”
View from Vox
Good to see Metals One moving forward with Black Schist, the project that long-standing shareholders are probably most familiar with. The asset has much to be said for it, including size, economics, and the strategic nature of the commodities it contains. If supported properly by the EU, the value uplift for Metals One – and for Europe – could be very significant.