The pan-europe team, including geologists from GEUS, will use mineralogy, petrology and geophysical techniques to create advanced exploration models to determine where the valuable minerals can be found.
The four year project, which has received 5.4 million from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, begins this month.
At present, the EU is highly dependent on imports of raw materials that are crucial for a strong European industrial base, an essential building block of the EU's growth and competitiveness. Less than three-per-cent of the supply of critical raw materials - which include REE, phosphate, and niobium - issourced directly from Europe. However, experts believe that there is a wealth of unexplored mineral deposits located across the continent, which could be successfully mined.
The project team comprises of 12 partners, including five universities, staff from two national geological surveys and the Natural History Museum, London. Four industry partners will also garner world-leading expertise to develop and expand their businesses, transferring their expertise from Africa to Europe, as part of the project.
The project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement number 689909.
Project:
HiTech AlkCarb - New geomodels to explore deeper for High-Technology critical raw materials in Alkaline rocks and Carbonatites
Partners:
University of Exeter, England (Project leader)
Universität Tübingen, German
University of St Andrews, Scotland
G. d'Annunzio University, Italy
Mendel University, Czech Republic
Natural History Museum, London
GeoAfrica
Terratec Geophysical Services
Lancaster Exploration Ltd
A. Speiser Environmental Consultants
British Geological Survey (BGS)
>Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS)
Contact:
Research Scientist Samuel Weatherley, GEUS
Tel.: +45 91 33 38 68
E-mail: smw@geus.dk