economy
January 10, 2026
Freedom from China? The mine at the centre of Europe’s push for rare earth metals
Swedish producer is trying to to accelerate the process of extracting the elements vital for hi-tech products
TL;DR
- Europe faces geopolitical tension due to China's near-monopoly on rare earth elements, essential for modern technology.
- A team in Kiruna, Sweden, is mining the Per Geijer deposit, one of Europe's largest rare earth reserves, to help reduce EU dependency on China.
- Establishing a full rare earth supply chain in Europe, from mining to refined end production, is estimated to take 10 to 15 years.
- China's dominance in the rare earth market stems from its willingness to process materials with fewer environmental regulations compared to the West.
- LKAB, the state-owned company in Kiruna, is investing in new plants and technology to accelerate extraction and separation processes.
- The EU's reliance on China for rare earth magnets is significant, with most of the 20,000 tonnes used annually coming from China.
- Making powerful magnets from rare earths generates radioactive byproducts, a factor that contributed to Western companies exporting processing to China.
- Recent efforts, like LKAB's investments and partnerships, aim to create an environmentally friendly refining process and de-risk EU supply chains.
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