{"id":11449,"date":"2025-01-24T13:11:05","date_gmt":"2025-01-24T11:11:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/rare-n-rare-earth-elements\/"},"modified":"2025-01-24T14:51:33","modified_gmt":"2025-01-24T12:51:33","slug":"rare-n-rare-earth-elements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/rare-n-rare-earth-elements\/","title":{"rendered":"RARE AND RARE EARTH METALS. RAW MATERIAL RESOURCES OF UKRAINE."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d\">\n#top .flex_column.av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d{\nmargin-top:0px;\nmargin-bottom:0px;\n}\n.responsive #top #wrap_all .flex_column.av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d{\nmargin-top:0px;\nmargin-bottom:0px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top .flex_column.av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d{\nmargin-top:50px;\n}\n.responsive #top #wrap_all .flex_column.av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d{\nmargin-top:50px;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top .flex_column.av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d{\nmargin-top:50px;\n}\n.responsive #top #wrap_all .flex_column.av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d{\nmargin-top:50px;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-m6ao26ml-28d79b8da9eb4689935b8780510d497d av_one_full  avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_one_full  avia-builder-el-first  first flex_column_div av-animated-generic fade-in  '     ><section  class='av_textblock_section av-m6ao0iui-5fffb7be9b6737be34d41ebdecdf8cb0 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='av-desktop-hide av-medium-hide avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><h1 class=\"dl-translatable-line svelte-t9u7lm is-sentence-segmentation\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">RARE AND RARE EARTH METALS. RAW MATERIAL RESOURCES OF UKRAINE.<\/span><\/strong><\/h1>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div  class='flex_column av-j3q1or-7acb9d8271bcc92bc3f3fbab593b831a av_one_full  avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_full  first flex_column_div  column-top-margin'     ><style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m6ao5qd6-dc4a3b4605317a972a1f3c5a37448420\">\n@keyframes av_boxShadowEffect_av-m6ao5qd6-dc4a3b4605317a972a1f3c5a37448420 {\n0%   { box-shadow:  0 0 0 0 ; opacity: 1; }\n100% { box-shadow:  0 0 10px 0 ; opacity: 1; }\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-m6ao5qd6-dc4a3b4605317a972a1f3c5a37448420 img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow: 0 0 10px 0 ;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-m6ao5qd6-dc4a3b4605317a972a1f3c5a37448420 .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-m6ao5qd6-dc4a3b4605317a972a1f3c5a37448420 av-styling- avia_animated_image av-animated-when-visible-95 left-to-right avia-align-center  avia-builder-el-3  avia-builder-el-no-sibling  av-img-box-shadow av-box-shadow-not-animated'   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" class='wp-image-11443 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-11443 avia_image shadow-not-animated' src='https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rare-2-1030x662.jpg' alt='' title='rare-2'  height=\"662\" width=\"1030\"  itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  \/><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<div  class='flex_column av-m6ao6el7-c2a0062345665e497e2f4cc147b188fe av_one_full  avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_hr  first flex_column_div av-animated-generic right-to-left  column-top-margin'     ><section  class='av_textblock_section av-m6anzzj4-056134b134699afc11a2b0ef01448bf6 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">The <strong>UN<\/strong> website states that <strong>Ukraine<\/strong> possesses deposits of <strong>21 rare and rare-earth elements<\/strong> from the list of <strong>30<\/strong> elements, identified by the European Union as <strong>\u201ccritical raw materials\u201d<\/strong> for production of devices for developing <strong>\u201cgreen\u201d energy.<\/strong> Among them are <strong>lithium, cobalt, scandium, tantalum, niobium,<\/strong> and others.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">According to expert estimates, <strong>Ukraine<\/strong> has approximately<strong> 5%<\/strong> of the world&#8217;s total reserves of <strong>&#8220;critical raw materials&#8221;<\/strong> in the form of rare and rare-earth metals.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>Ukraine<\/strong> has the largest confirmed <strong>lithium<\/strong> 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 <strong>$12 trillion.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">The most important feature of Ukraine&#8217;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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Rare and rare-earth metals have been found in complex deposits and ore occurrences within the <strong>Ukrainian Shield.<\/strong> The mineral wealth of the Ukrainian Shield has existed for about <strong>3.4 billion years.<\/strong> &#8220;Ukraine has significant reserves of non-ferrous and rare-earth metals, including unique deposits of <strong>beryllium, zirconium, tantalum,<\/strong> as well as a complex of phosphate rare-earth and rare-metal ores,&#8221; reports <strong>MiningWorld.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>Zirconium and scandium<\/strong> are concentrated in placer and primary deposits in significant volumes, but their mining is not carried out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>The Azov zirconium<\/strong> 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 &#8220;Yuzhukrgeologia.&#8221; In the early 2000s, an industrial assessment of the deposit was conducted.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Azov deposit belongs to the category of very large rare-earth deposits with rich ores (geologic reserves exceeding <strong>500,000 tons<\/strong> 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 <strong>1 million tons<\/strong> of ZrO<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2082<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> at a concentration of 1.4%). In terms of the value of <strong>yttrium and lanthanum<\/strong> 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).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">The Azov deposit has not been fully studied yet, but today it can be said that <strong>cerium, samarium, europium, terbium, ytterbium, and lutetium<\/strong> have been identified in it in addition to <strong>zirconium, yttrium, and lanthanum.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">The most explored deposit in Ukraine is the <strong>Mazurovsk deposit<\/strong> (Donetsk region). Sixteen ore bodies with industrial concentrations of tantalum, niobium, and zirconium, as well as a valuable accompanying component \u2013 nepheline have been found there. The total ore reserves exceed <strong>200 million tons.<\/strong> 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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">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 <strong>2 million tons.<\/strong> Mineralogical and chemical composition of the concentration tailings is identical to that of primary ores of the Mazurovsk deposit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Most of Ukraine&#8217;s deposits have not been fully explored. Among them are <strong>Novopoltavka rare metal-apatite deposit<\/strong> (Zaporizhzhia region) with predicted resources of<strong> 0.5 thousand tons<\/strong> of rare-earth metals and <strong>Petrovo-Hnutovsk deposit<\/strong> (Donetsk region) of fluorite and rare-earth elements.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">The deposit of yttrium, rare-earths metals and zirconium is located near the settlement of <strong>Perga in Zhytomir region.<\/strong> Predicted resources to a depth of 300 m are: neodymium &#8211; <strong>143 thousand tons,<\/strong> other rare-earth metals &#8211; <strong>299 thousand tons.<\/strong> Predicted resources of yttrium and rare-earth elements at <strong>Balka Korabelnaya<\/strong> (near Pervomaysk, Nikolaev region): rare-earth oxides &#8211; <strong>89 tons,<\/strong> yttrium oxide &#8211; <strong>34 tons.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>Lithium<\/strong> 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 <strong>Polokhovsk deposit<\/strong> in Kirovohrad region, the largest among the explored ones. A smaller <strong>Stankovatsk deposit<\/strong> is nearby, and another one, <strong>Shevchenkivsk deposit<\/strong> 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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">According to available open-source information, <strong>lithium<\/strong> ore reserves at the <strong>Shevchenkivsk deposit<\/strong> amount to<strong> 5.7 million tons<\/strong> in category C1 and over <strong>8 million tons<\/strong> in category C2.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>Palladium<\/strong> 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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">The country also has a real opportunity to enter the global market with pure and ultra-pure metals such as gallium, indium, and thallium.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">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:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">&#8211; Hydroxide of the total rare-earth concentrate (70% cerium group elements and 30% yttrium);<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">&#8211; 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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">&#8211; The &#8220;didymium&#8221; alloy (neodymium + praseodymium) serves as the basis for producing high-energy neodymium-iron-boron magnets.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Ukraine does not produce rare-earth metals.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Extraction of rare and rare-earth metals from existing deposits is feasible but requires a detailed techno-economic assessment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Ukraine has a strong resource potential for <strong>scandium, beryllium, niobium, tantalum, lithium, zirconium<\/strong> 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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Currently, it is the only reasonable approach that will enable the domestic industry to compete in global markets.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">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.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">Leading experts agree that the world&#8217;s security and energy future will be shaped by two emerging trends: alternative transportation and &#8220;energy transition&#8221;, driven by the climate crisis. As a result, the <strong>World Bank<\/strong> predicts that mining and production of rare-earth materials will increase by <strong>500% by 2050.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\">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&#8217;s advancement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-11436\" src=\"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rare-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"615\" height=\"461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rare-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rare-1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rare-1-705x529.jpg 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 615px) 100vw, 615px\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>CONCLUSIONS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>1.<\/strong> Nearly <strong>5%<\/strong> of the world&#8217;s total reserves of <strong>&#8220;critical raw materials&#8221;<\/strong> in the form of rare and rare-earth metals are concentrated in <strong>Ukraine.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>2.<\/strong> <strong>Ukraine<\/strong> has the largest confirmed <strong>lithium<\/strong> reserves in Europe and the biggest rare metal resources in <strong>Europe.<\/strong> The value of these deposits is estimated at up to <strong>12 trillion USD.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>3. <\/strong>Ukraine has a strong resource potential for <strong>scandium, beryllium, niobium, tantalum, lithium, zirconium,<\/strong> and rare-earth metals.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>4. <\/strong>A distinctive advantage of Ukrainian mineral resources compared to other deposits is the potential for their <strong>complete use<\/strong> by simultaneous obtaining highly marketable products, such as zirconium and feldspar concentrates etc.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>5.<\/strong> Attraction of <strong>investors<\/strong> to mining and processing of rare and rare-earth metals could become the key to development and prosperity of Ukraine.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div  class='hr av-m6aoxpp5-aaad94a3a60efbc27694115475846641 hr-short  avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_full  hr-center'><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<div  class='flex_column av-kgs5xn-2ee45a83e8d0f5dd51f8b307c24ad4ce av_one_full  avia-builder-el-7  el_after_av_hr  el_before_av_hr  first flex_column_div  '     ><style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m6aozh2p-2d43c1a34c48f63ced5518b28e79b874\">\n.av_font_icon.av-m6aozh2p-2d43c1a34c48f63ced5518b28e79b874 .av-icon-char{\nfont-size:40px;\nline-height:40px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<span  class='av_font_icon av-m6aozh2p-2d43c1a34c48f63ced5518b28e79b874 avia_animate_when_visible av-icon-style- avia-icon-pos-center av-no-color avia-icon-animate'><a href='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MTECHNOLOGIYA'   class='av-icon-char' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue8f3' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' data-avia-icon-tooltip=\"&lt;br \/&gt;\nVISIT US ON FACEBOOK&lt;br \/&gt;\n\"><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m6aozql6-5421527ed443c44229e88f77d79d9b83\">\n#top .hr.hr-invisible.av-m6aozql6-5421527ed443c44229e88f77d79d9b83{\nheight:50px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-m6aozql6-5421527ed443c44229e88f77d79d9b83 hr-invisible  avia-builder-el-9  el_after_av_one_full  avia-builder-el-last '><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11437,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stati"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11449"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11449\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11459,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11449\/revisions\/11459"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11437"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mtechnology.com.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}