Government proposes to capitalise Finnish Minerals Group
Capitalisation would provide new opportunities for developing the Finnish battery value chain and mining operations as well as circular economy projects related to them.
THE FINNISH GOVERNMENT has announced its preparedness to capitalise the State-owned company Finnish Minerals Group. The strategy of Finnish Minerals Group involves being an active owner and technological developer of Finnish mining companies, and increasing the degree of processing of Finnish minerals by strengthening the lithium-ion battery value chain.
A supplementary budget to be submitted to the Parliament in June proposes to Finnish Minerals Group a funding package of EUR 450 million, EUR 300 million of which is based on the mandate procedure. The mandate would give the company a possibility to enter into contracts and give commitments, the costs of which would be covered in subsequent government budgets.
According to CEO Matti Hietanen, the planned additional funding would enable the company to invest in developing the Finnish battery value chain and mining industry as well as promoting circular economy projects related to them. Finnish Minerals Group’s project company, Finnish Battery Chemicals, is currently focusing on the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure on precursor and cathode active material plants, which are part of the battery value chain.
“Investing in the battery value chain gives us an opportunity to create new high-technology industry and boost economic activity. The funding would enable us to finalise the co-investment negotiations regarding the establishment of battery materials plants in Finland. We are highly motivated to pursue for industrial investments that will support Finland in returning to its path of sustainable growth after the corona crises,” Hietanen says.
Significant economic potential in battery material plants
According to an economic impact assessment commissioned by Finnish Minerals Group, the precursor and cathode active material plants with an annual capacity of 50,000 tonnes will create approximately 300 new jobs once in operation. In addition to the direct employment impact, there would be multiplier effects related to production and consumption. All in all, the two new plants would, at this level of capacity, generate approximately 4,500 person-years of work. The investments are also estimated to annually generate over EUR 200 million in tax revenues. The ongoing EIA process involves assessing the environmental impacts of battery material production at three production capacity options: 20,000, 60,000 and 120,000 tonnes per year.
Based on its co-investment strategy, Finnish Minerals Group is pursuing investments of approximately EUR 1.5 billion in the Finnish battery value chain. In this scenario, Finland would also have a battery cell plant leading to clearly larger economic impact.
Terms used in the text:
pCAM – precursor cathode active material, preliminary stage of the lithium-ion battery cathode active material.
CAM – cathode active material, a powdery end-product used in cathode manufacturing at cell plants.
Further information for the media:
CEO Matti Hietanen, Finnish Minerals Group, +358 40 8238806, matti.hietanen(at)mineralsgroup.fi