European mining developments in the week ending 24 July 2026 increasingly focused on processing, refining and downstream technology. New French rare-earth investment, Finland’s integrated lithium project and Sweden’s critical-minerals policy highlighted the importance of converting ores, concentrates and recycled materials into industrial products.
France expands rare-earth capacity
At Lacq, USA Rare Earth agreed to acquire a 13.6% stake in Carester, alongside an equivalent investment by InfraVia. Carester’s Caremag facility is scheduled to begin commissioning in the fourth quarter of 2026 and will process permanent-magnet waste and heavy-rare-earth concentrates. Caremag has secured about €216 million, including €106 million in French government support and approximately €110 million from Japanese investors. Planned capacity includes 2,000 tonnes of permanent magnets and 5,000 tonnes of mineral concentrate annually. USA Rare Earth has indicated that the wider platform could reach around 7,000 tonnes per year.
Carester’s partner Less Common Metals, now part of USA Rare Earth, is developing a nearby metal and alloy facility with planned capacity of 3,750 tonnes per year and estimated investment of €110 million, with production previously targeted for 2027. At La Rochelle, Solvay is expanding separated neodymium and praseodymium oxide production. The company has said the facility could eventually supply material equivalent to as much as 30% of European permanent-magnet demand by 2030, with a full expansion potentially requiring more than €100 million.
Sweden strengthens strategic-mineral policy
Sweden classified critical-metal and rare-earth mining as a national-security interest, with LKAB’s Per Geijer deposit near Kiruna among the key assets. The deposit contains approximately 1.2 billion tonnes of mineral resources, including around 2.2 million tonnes of rare-earth oxides. LKAB is investing about €80 million in pilot-scale separation and process development, including cooperation with REEtec, while planning a critical-minerals industrial park in Luleå. Sweden also plans faster permitting, strategic land allocation and an assessment of a state-owned mining investment company.
Keliber moves toward lithium production
Sibanye-Stillwater’s Keliber project in Finland is moving from construction into commissioning, linking the Syväjärvi mine, the Päiväneva concentrator in Kaustinen and a refinery at Kokkola Industrial Park. Total investment has reached approximately €783 million, while the refinery is designed to produce around 15,000 tonnes a year of battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate over at least 18 years. The European Investment Bank previously provided €150 million, with Finnish Minerals Group holding a strategic minority stake. Keliber uses Metso’s alkaline-pressure-leaching process, designed to produce lithium hydroxide while reducing sulphate by-products. Metso’s refinery technology package was initially valued at about €80 million, with the broader equipment order reaching roughly €120 million.
Lithium and graphite projects advance
Savannah Resources’ Barroso project in Portugal has a 14-year Phase 1 operating life, a maiden probable reserve of approximately 20 million tonnes and planned production of about 2.56 million tonnes of spodumene concentrate, averaging 183,000 tonnes annually. First production remains targeted for late 2028, supported by potential Portuguese public funding of up to €110 million. In the Czech Republic, Cinovec is owned 51% by ČEZ and 49% by European Metals Holdings and is being developed around underground mining, beneficiation and chemical lithium conversion.
GreenRoc Strategic Materials has opened a pilot-processing facility in Hørsholm, Denmark, to convert material from the Amitsoq graphite project in Greenland into active anode material. Grafintec, part of Beowulf Mining, is developing a proposed graphite anode-material plant in Finland using potential feed from Aitolampi and Rääpysjärvi. Battery recycling is also moving toward commercial-scale processing. Nth Cycle plans to deploy its Oyster refining system in the Netherlands by 2028, supported by a €7.5 million grant. Its $1.1 billion, 10-year offtake agreement with Trafigura covers nickel and lithium products from planned processing of approximately 12,000 tonnes of battery black mass, producing about 2,000 tonnes of nickel and 1,500 tonnes of lithium carbonate.
European refining capacity remains strategically important
Ireland’s Aughinish Alumina refinery, owned by Rusal, supplies approximately 37% of EU alumina. The facility employs about 475 people directly and supports close to 1,000 additional jobs. The Irish government said it found no definitive evidence linking exports to Russian weapons production, while concerns over shipments to Russia remain unresolved. In Serbia, Serbia Zijin Copper’s Bor complex combines mining, concentration, smelting and copper refining, while Rio Tinto’s Jadar lithium-borate project remains in care and maintenance after development was halted in late 2025. Planned Jadar investment had been estimated at approximately $2.95 billion, with the proposed operation designed to process jadarite into lithium and borate products.
