Metso will engineer and deliver process technology for a new pilot-scale mineral processing facility being developed by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) in Outokumpu. The company will supply equipment and technology for the GTK Mintec facility, expanding Finland’s capacity to test processing routes for mining and critical raw-material projects. The contract value has not been disclosed. Metso said the order will be recorded in its Minerals division orders received during the third quarter.
Two Processing Lines Planned
The facility will feature two processing lines designed to test multiple stages and technologies, including high-pressure grinding rolls, ore sorting, primary and fine grinding, coarse and fine flotation, dry tailings stacking and side-stream processing.
The plant will also use closed-loop water systems, while operations are scheduled to begin by the end of 2028. GTK Mintec is intended to provide a pilot-scale testing stage between laboratory research and commercial plant design. This will allow mining developers to evaluate processing routes before making commitments to larger capital programmes.
Pilot Testing for Complex Mineral Projects
Pilot-scale processing can provide data on metallurgical recovery, energy consumption, water requirements and tailings management, factors that can influence the viability and financing of mineral projects. The need for such testing has increased as European projects advance toward lower-grade and more complex deposits, including resources that previously may not have been considered economic. Pilot plants can generate engineering information required for feasibility studies and commercial plant design, helping developers demonstrate processing performance at a larger scale.
Focus on Processing Efficiency and Critical Raw Materials
The Outokumpu facility will also provide a platform for testing technologies focused on lower water consumption, improved energy efficiency and recovery of additional material from waste streams. These areas are becoming increasingly important as mining companies face tighter environmental requirements and pressure to improve resource efficiency.
Finland already has an established mining-technology cluster, with Metso among the region’s major suppliers of crushing, grinding, flotation and mineral-processing equipment. The facility also forms part of broader European efforts to expand domestic critical-raw-material processing capacity, reducing reliance on imported concentrates or refined products. Mineral processing has been identified as a key gap in Europe’s raw-material supply chain alongside mining and refining.
Metso Positioned in Early-Stage Project Development
For Metso, the contract is smaller than major commercial processing-plant orders but places the company within an early-stage mineral-processing technology and project-development environment. Results from pilot programmes can influence equipment selection when projects advance to construction, while technically viable mineral resources can remain difficult to finance when metallurgical recovery and process design have not been sufficiently demonstrated. The GTK Mintec facility in Outokumpu is therefore intended to support the transition of mining and recycling projects from laboratory testing toward industrial-scale development.
