Norway has confirmed its large phosphate reserve estimations, having found a sizable subsurface deposit of phosphorite in its south-western region, with an estimated total weight of at least 70 billion tons, according to Euractiv.
The discovery would be the world’s largest reserve, and was discovered last month by the Anglo-Norwegian company Norge Mining.
According to the latter, the reserve would be “sufficient to provide the world’s need for batteries for electric cars, solar panels, and fertilizers for the next 100 years.”
The Norwegian deposit is just slightly less than global reserves, which stood at 71 billion tons in 2021, based on data from the United States Institute of Geological Studies.
“It is considerable when you find something of this magnitude in Europe, which exceeds all other sources we know of,” said Michael Wurmser, CEO of Norge Mining.
Norge Mining wants to move the project to the next level of mining production now that the exploration phase is over.
The Norwegian government has been “very supportive” of the project and announced that it will rapidly approve all crucial raw materials.
Economic viability studies are one of the requirements that have been completed, according to the company.
“This discovery would contribute to the objectives of the Commission’s proposal on the regulation of critical raw materials” according to a representative for the EU executive.
The discovery was first made by Norge Mining in 2018 using data from the Norwegian Geological Survey. The estimated depth of the underground mineral body, which had been thought to be 300 meters, turned out to be 4,500 meters.
Morocco containes the greatest phosphorite resources in the world with approximately 50 billion tons.
In 2022, Morocco generated 40 million MT of the fertilizer and supplied more than 70% of the world’s phosphate deposits. The North African country had a minor increase in phosphate production last year because of continuous capacity expansions.
China has the third greatest phosphate reserves in the world with 1.9 billion MT of the product. The Chinese government has imposed export limits on phosphate to lower fertilizer prices domestically by using its own supply.
By 2021, the market for phosphate fertilizers was valued at US$63.81 billion; through 2040, it is anticipated to increase by 5.7% CAGR to reach US$176 billion.
Despite the discovery being quite significant, the exact component percentages of Norge Mining’s announced reserves remains to be detailed.
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