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The Nordic Region is a Strong Actor in the Critical and Strategic Raw Materials Value Chain, in a Changing Global Landscape

The Nordic region holds significant potential to strengthen Europe’s supply of critical and strategic raw materials at a time of rapidly growing demand and increasing geopolitical uncertainty. This is stated in a report by Nordic Innovation, the compilation of which was led by the Geological Survey of Finland GTK.

Rocks on ground with solar panels and wind turbines in background
Photo: Adobe Stock, AI generated

Competition for critical and strategic raw materials intensifies globally. At the same time, the combined forces of the green and digital transitions, alongside shifting geopolitical dynamics, are reshaping both demand and supply systems. In this environment, the ability to deliver reliable, scalable and timely metal and mineral supply has become as important as ensuring the availability of resources themselves.

The report identifies the Nordic region as a strong but selective contributor. The region’s strength lies in its targeted role within global value chains. Its contribution to European supply is defined as complementary and long-term.

“However, the central question is no longer whether mineral potential exist, but whether the deposits can be developed and coordinated to strengthen the European supply chains. The Nordic countries have critical and strategic raw materials in their bedrock, but they also have processing capacity for raw materials sourced from elsewhere too”, says Saku Vuori, Acting Director General, GTK.

Geopolitics and strategy are becoming increasingly intertwined. Strategic partnerships are used to reduce risks related to supply chains. The EU has been active in this area, as have other actors.

The Nordic region combines key advantages: substantial mineral potential and known resources for several critical and strategic raw materials, established mining and metallurgical industries, technology manufacturing, high-quality geological data, stable regulatory frameworks and strong commitment to responsible sourcing aligned with international ESG standards. All these factors support resilience.

Raw materials such as lithium, copper, cobalt, graphite, nickel and rare earth elements are essential to current and future transitions. All of these can be found in the Nordic countries.

The report shows that Nordic resource potential is considerable but unevenly distributed across materials and locations, rendering them unreplaceable either because of their resources or strategic positioning. Meeting future demand will require continued reliance on primary mining, alongside improved recovery from existing operations, greater process efficiency and the gradual expansion of recycling practice.

The key challenge is to translate the potential of raw materials into investment decisions that lead to production. An example of addressing this challenge is the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and the strategic projects it identifies related to mineral resources, recycling and processing, as well as the promotion of these projects.

The report defines the Nordic region as a key component of a more resilient European raw materials system. However, unlocking its full potential will require sustained investment in the acquiring and cultivating of geological knowledge, coordinated development efforts to support investments.

The publication updates earlier assessments in light of the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act which entered into force in 2024, and reflects the latest understanding of Europe’s strategic material needs.

The report is funded by Nordic Innovation and led by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) in collaboration with the following partner organisations: Geological Survey of Sweden (SGU); Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS); Geological Survey of Norway (NGU); University of Iceland (HI); Iceland GeoSurvey (ÍSOR) and Ministry of Mineral Resources, Government of Greenland.

The report: The Nordic Supply Potential of Critical and Strategic Raw Materials Under a Twin Transition and Geopolitical Reordering

For more information

Saku Vuori, Acting Director General
Geological Survey of Finland GTK
Tel. +358 29 503 0216
saku.vuori@gtk.fi

Leonardo Feltrin, Senior Research Specialist
Geological Survey of Finland GTK
Tel. +358 29 503 0057
leonardo.feltrin@gtk.fi

Map of Nordic countries with points for critical raw material deposits

The role of Finland in the Nordic region’s raw material scene

Finland has the broadest and best-constrained CSRM endowment in the Nordic region. In the current commodity summaries, it is the only Nordic country with active primary mine production of cobalt, phosphorus and PGMs, and it also hosts the largest identified Nordic resources for cobalt (541,258 t Co), nickel (6.88 Mt Ni), lithium (113,917 t Li), phosphorus (219.8 Mt P) and PGMs (approximately 890.2 t).

Known resources include around 611.96 t Pd, 278.24 t Pt and 3.61 t Rh in Finnish resources. Finland also has significant graphite, titanium and vanadium endowment, together with additional potential for beryllium, niobium, REEs, scandium, tantalum and tungsten. Statistical assessments further indicate major undiscovered cobalt, copper, nickel, PGM, phosphate, REE, titanium and vanadium endowment in Finland (Rasilainen et al. 2017, 2020; GTK, 2025; Tukes, 2025; Boliden, 2026).

Finland’s importance is not only geological but also distinctly midstream. Harjavalta, Kokkola and Terrafame represent a mature metal refining and battery-chemicals system: Finland refined approximately 12,025 t cobalt in 2025, equivalent to roughly 8% of reported global refinery output, and produced approximately 99,862 t nickel products in 2024. Finnish Minerals Group also reports the Hamina pCAM project and the battery materials plant planned in Kotka as part of the same midstream expansion (Finnish Minerals Group, 2025a; Finnish Minerals Group, 2025b).

With regard to lithium, Finland is also the most advanced EU case, as the Keliber project’s Syväjärvi mine began operations on 11 February 2026, although the broader integrated mine-concentrator-refinery chain remains in staged commissioning through 2026. A major undeveloped resource is Sokli, where the large phosphate endowment is accompanied by potentially significant niobium, tantalum and REE (IEA, 2025a; Tukes, 2025; Finnish Minerals Group, 2025c; Sibanye-Stillwater, 2026).