Minerals for Hundreds of Billions Underground – NRK Rogaland – Local News, TV and Radio

– It’s almost scary how big it is. We don’t know how much more than 300 billion it is. But we think it’s much, much more, says founder and co-owner Øyvind Standeren Pedersen at Norway Mining.

In Ualand in the municipality of Eigersund, the Norwegian Geological Survey (NGU) already found in 2012 minerals worth NOK 300 billion.

Now the private company Norge Mining has found even more. So far, they have drilled 25 holes in the area. The samples taken confirm the findings that NGU made in 2012, but also more.

– We are now drilling deeper than NGU has, and we have found evidence that deposits are even greater than 300 billion.

So far, the minerals apatite, which contains phosphorus used in fertilizers, magnetite and vanadium, used in batteries and wind turbines, and titanium, used in prosthetics, have been found.

Wants the state administration

The values ​​in the Ualand area are so great that the mayor of Eigersund wants the state in the field to manage the values ​​in the same way that oil resources are managed.

– I ask for clearer ownership by the state. I wish we had a “Minoro”, a Petoro of minerals, that would be clear and ensure the interests of the community in the values ​​that underlie the earth.

Stangeland refers to how we regulate oil resources and how the state has secured hydropower. He believes that we secure the values ​​found in minerals.

– We should do this on the owner’s side, but perhaps also on the operator’s side with a “mineral equinor” where we make sure the competition is built in Norway and the values ​​remain here.

Modernize the Minerals Law

Trade and Industry Minister Iselin Nybø (V) points out that there is already a directorate responsible for mineral deposits.

– The government wants to facilitate business development and growth within the framework of the legislation we have, this can happen without the need to create a new state company for the mining industry.

She points out that mineral resources can create jobs in rural areas.

– That is why we have created a public committee to present proposals on how the Minerals Law can be developed and modernized. I look forward to receiving your input, says Nybø.

For generations to come

Norway Mining has found minerals in a larger area than NGU has investigated. But it is uncertain how large the area is and how many more minerals are involved.

Norway Mining has also started drilling up to 2,200 meters and they believe there is a nickel-copper core.

This is very valuable, among other things, for battery and wind turbine technology. But it is not easy to calculate how much value there may be underground in Dalane.

There is already mining in the area. Titania A / S in the neighboring municipality of Sokndal mines titanium.

The area that Norwegian mining is investigating now is part of the same year. And the years here are potentially much larger than the one Titania operates on, the company believes.

– At the moment we are only investigating the reason to find out if the values ​​are here. It can take many years before a mine arrives. It can take 50 years, it can take 100 years. This is a resource for future generations. We are not going to dig up everything at once. Here we can dig for many generations to come.