The UN website states that Ukraine possesses deposits of 21 rare and rare-earth elements from the list of 30 elements, identified by the European Union as “critical raw materials” for production of devices for developing “green” energy. Among them are lithium, cobalt, scandium, tantalum, niobium, and others.

According to expert estimates, Ukraine has approximately 5% of the world’s total reserves of “critical raw materials” in the form of rare and rare-earth metals.

Ukraine has the largest confirmed lithium reserves in Europe and is among the richest European countries in rare metal raw materials. The value of these deposits is estimated at up to $12 trillion.

The most important feature of Ukraine’s rare-earth metal resource base is that the explored mineral deposits in Ukraine represent fairly large deposits of all known genetic types. This enables Ukraine to fully meet the requirements of its own industry and be one of the leaders in the global market of metals. Some of the deposits are unique.

Rare and rare-earth metals have been found in complex deposits and ore occurrences within the Ukrainian Shield. The mineral wealth of the Ukrainian Shield has existed for about 3.4 billion years. “Ukraine has significant reserves of non-ferrous and rare-earth metals, including unique deposits of beryllium, zirconium, tantalum, as well as a complex of phosphate rare-earth and rare-metal ores,” reports MiningWorld.

Zirconium and scandium are concentrated in placer and primary deposits in significant volumes, but their mining is not carried out.

The Azov zirconium ore deposit in Donetsk region was explored back in the days of the Soviet Union. The main exploratory development on the territory of the Azov structure was carried out for zirconium ores between 1988 and 1992 by the Pryazovsk Expedition of the State Enterprise “Yuzhukrgeologia.” In the early 2000s, an industrial assessment of the deposit was conducted.

The Azov deposit belongs to the category of very large rare-earth deposits with rich ores (geologic reserves exceeding 500,000 tons of rare metal oxides) at concentrations in the ores of up to 1-2%. The industrial value of the deposit is significantly enhanced by the presence of large zirconium reserves in the ores (about 1 million tons of ZrO₂ at a concentration of 1.4%). In terms of the value of yttrium and lanthanum it is three times richer than the Lovozero deposit on the Kola Peninsula and is comparable to such unique global deposits as Baiyun Obo (China) and Mountain Pass (USA).

The Azov deposit has not been fully studied yet, but today it can be said that cerium, samarium, europium, terbium, ytterbium, and lutetium have been identified in it in addition to zirconium, yttrium, and lanthanum.

The most explored deposit in Ukraine is the Mazurovsk deposit (Donetsk region). Sixteen ore bodies with industrial concentrations of tantalum, niobium, and zirconium, as well as a valuable accompanying component – nepheline have been found there. The total ore reserves exceed 200 million tons. The first ore body has been partially extracted by open-pit mining within 15 years. After dressing and treatment zircon concentrate was produced. At that time Mazurovsk field was considered a zircon deposit only. By the early 1990s, the extraction of rare and rare-earth metals was suspended.

A technogenic deposit, a hydrosludge dump of the concentration plant, formed by processing tailings of rare metal ores from the Mazurovsk deposit, is also of industrial interest with its nearly 2 million tons. Mineralogical and chemical composition of the concentration tailings is identical to that of primary ores of the Mazurovsk deposit.

Most of Ukraine’s deposits have not been fully explored. Among them are Novopoltavka rare metal-apatite deposit (Zaporizhzhia region) with predicted resources of 0.5 thousand tons of rare-earth metals and Petrovo-Hnutovsk deposit (Donetsk region) of fluorite and rare-earth elements.

The deposit of yttrium, rare-earths metals and zirconium is located near the settlement of Perga in Zhytomir region. Predicted resources to a depth of 300 m are: neodymium – 143 thousand tons, other rare-earth metals – 299 thousand tons. Predicted resources of yttrium and rare-earth elements at Balka Korabelnaya (near Pervomaysk, Nikolaev region): rare-earth oxides – 89 tons, yttrium oxide – 34 tons.

Lithium is not currently being mined in Ukraine, although geologists assert based on exploration data that the country leads Europe in lithium reserves. Investors might be interested in Polokhovsk deposit in Kirovohrad region, the largest among the explored ones. A smaller Stankovatsk deposit is nearby, and another one, Shevchenkivsk deposit lies on the border of Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions. Considering the proximity of these raw materials to enterprises of leading European manufacturers and consumers of lithium-based products, investments in lithium extraction and production appear quite promising.

According to available open-source information, lithium ore reserves at the Shevchenkivsk deposit amount to 5.7 million tons in category C1 and over 8 million tons in category C2.

Palladium is also present in Ukraine. However, the volume of its deposits is unknown because exploration works have not been carried out, and the metal has not been mined.

The country also has a real opportunity to enter the global market with pure and ultra-pure metals such as gallium, indium, and thallium.

In the Soviet period Ukraine produced rare and rare-earth metals. A representative of this sector was Pridneprovsky Chemical Plant, which produced a wide range of compounds of such rare and rare-earth elements as:

– Hydroxide of the total rare-earth concentrate (70% cerium group elements and 30% yttrium);

– Oxides and carbonates of total rare-earth concentrate; in 1998, a new extraction separation series was put in operation, dividing production into two groups: the cerium (light) group with an annual output of 900-1,050 tons, and the yttrium (medium-heavy) group with an annual output of 450 tons.

– The “didymium” alloy (neodymium + praseodymium) serves as the basis for producing high-energy neodymium-iron-boron magnets.

Ukraine does not produce rare-earth metals.

A notable advantage of Ukrainian mineral resources compared to other deposits is the potential for their complete use by simultaneous obtaining highly marketable products, such as zirconium and feldspar concentrates etc.

Extraction of rare and rare-earth metals from existing deposits is feasible but requires a detailed techno-economic assessment.

Ukraine has a strong resource potential for scandium, beryllium, niobium, tantalum, lithium, zirconium and rare-earth metals. However, developing deposits of rare metal ores is more challenging compared to iron or manganese ores. Rare metals are present in rocks in small quantities, requiring modern and efficient concentration technologies.

Currently, it is the only reasonable approach that will enable the domestic industry to compete in global markets.

Development of the defense industrial sector and technological diffusion of new renewable energy technologies have increased the importance of rare and rare-earth metals in international competition.

Leading experts agree that the world’s security and energy future will be shaped by two emerging trends: alternative transportation and “energy transition”, driven by the climate crisis. As a result, the World Bank predicts that mining and production of rare-earth materials will increase by 500% by 2050.

It means that attracting investors to rare and rare-earth metal extraction and processing could become a key to development and prosperity of Ukraine. Development of domestic mineral resources should be considered one of the priorities in the country’s advancement.

CONCLUSIONS

1. Nearly 5% of the world’s total reserves of “critical raw materials” in the form of rare and rare-earth metals are concentrated in Ukraine.

2. Ukraine has the largest confirmed lithium reserves in Europe and the biggest rare metal resources in Europe. The value of these deposits is estimated at up to 12 trillion USD.

3. Ukraine has a strong resource potential for scandium, beryllium, niobium, tantalum, lithium, zirconium, and rare-earth metals.

4. A distinctive advantage of Ukrainian mineral resources compared to other deposits is the potential for their complete use by simultaneous obtaining highly marketable products, such as zirconium and feldspar concentrates etc.

5. Attraction of investors to mining and processing of rare and rare-earth metals could become the key to development and prosperity of Ukraine.