Norway scr

Norway
A supplement to Mining Journal

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INTRODUCTION

Welcome
to Norway

I

T IS a pleasure to take the opportunity offered
by this supplement to invite you to explore
the mineral potential of Norway. Our long
coastline and well-developed infrastructure
allow ready access, and the country has a
varied but under-explored geology.
Bog iron ores were exploited in Norway as long ago
as 400BC, but larger-scale mining began in the early
17th century with the opening of the silver mines at
Kongsberg southwest of Oslo (1623), and of copper
mines at Røros (1644) and Løkken (1652) near
Trondheim in central Norway. Each of these mines was
in almost continuous operation for over 330 years.
Along with many more recent operations they led to
the development of skills in mineral dressing and
metallurgy as well as in exploration and mining.
The mining/quarrying industry in Norway currently
includes such diverse products as titanium minerals for
use as pigments (fifth largest producer in the world);
iron ore (two mines, one of them opened in mid-2009);
calcium carbonate slurry for use in paper and other
industries (largest producer in Europe); coal (the world’s

FAST FACTS
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An Aspermont company

Published in January 2010 by:
Aspermont UK, Albert House, 1 Singer Street
London EC2A 4BQ
Tel: +44 (0)20 7216 6060
Fax: +44 (0)20 7216 6050
E-mail: editorial@mining-journal.com
Website: www.mining-journal.com

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Mining Journal special publication – Norway

02-03Norway1002.indd 2

Coastline:

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Highest point:
Terrain:

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15
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Front: Stetind, Norway’s national mountain, is a pillar of Palaeoproterozoic
granite 1,392m high and 180km north of the Arctic Circle.
Photo: Asgeir Kvalvik

Supplement editor: Chris Hinde
Design and production:
Woody Phillips
Printed by Stephens & George, Merthyr Tydfil, UK
© Aspermont UK 2010

Total area:

Neighbours:

Population:
Main towns:

Languages:

Independence:

Currency:

385,155km2, including Jan
Mayen and the Svalbard
archipelago.
25,148km; comprising
mainland (2,650km), and
fjords, numerous small islands
and minor indentations
(22,498km).
Galdhøpiggen (2,469m).
Glaciated, mostly high plateaus
and rugged mountains broken
by fertile valleys, small,
scattered plains, coastline
deeply indented by fjords,
Arctic tundra in the north.
Finland (727km land
boundary), Sweden (1,619km)
and Russia (196km).
4.8 million (January 2009).
Oslo (579,000), Bergen
(252,000) and Trondheim
(170,000).
Norwegian and Sami (a large
part of the population is also
fluent in English).
June 7, 1905 (Norway declared
the union with Sweden
dissolved).
Norwegian kroner (NOK);
NOK100 = €11.84 and
US$17.48 (mid-December
2009).

US$450 billion (nominal
value, World Bank 2008);
24th place.
GDP per capita:
US$94,360 (nominal
value, World Bank 2008);
2nd place.
Unemployment:
3.1% (September 2009).
Life expectancy:
Female – 82.5 years;
Male – 77.7 years.
Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, fish,
timber, hydropower, iron,
copper, lead, nickel, zinc,
titanium minerals,
dimension stone, marble,
nepheline, olivine.
Major industries: Petroleum/gas production,
metal smelters, chemical
industries, ship building,
construction of offshore
installations, fishing/fish
farming, timber/pulp/paper,
agriculture and food
processing.
Government:
Constitutional monarchy
and parliamentary
democracy.The governing
coalition comprises
ministerial posts held by the
Labour Party, the Socialist
Left Party and the Centre
Party.The prime minister is
Jens Stoltenberg (Labour).
GDP:

Sources: Innovation Norway, Norway Exports, CIA - The World Factbook

CONTENTS
Sea, mountains and fjords
New deposits in old rocks
New Mineral Act
The Norwegian Mining and
Quarrying Industries
Store Norske: Arctic Technology
for the 21st Century
LNS mining operations: from Pole to Pole
Titania: White pigment from
a black mineral
Nussir: Norway’s next copper mine?
Norwegian Crystallites: High-purity
crystal quartz
Nordic Mining: A future in minerals
Gexco: Gold and zinc with high potential
Intex Resources: Nordli porphyrymolybdenum deposit
Geological Survey: Services for industry
Contact information

northernmost active mine, at 77°54´, on Svalbard); and
large quantities of construction materials, of which
increasing quantities are for export.This supplement
bears witness to the interest that many Norwegian
companies have in co-operation with new partners.
A focus on hydrocarbon resources offshore is one
of the main reasons for mainland Norway being
under-explored. However, as you can see from this
supplement, our country has an important potential
for many types of mineral resources, including several
of the special metals that are so sought after for
high-technology applications.
The Norwegian parliament has recently passed a
new Mineral Act that will facilitate procedures and
clarify many issues related to exploration for mineral
resources. I am confident that the Directorate of
Mining and the Geological Survey will be pleased
to assist you.
We look forward to welcoming you.
Trond Giske
Minister of Trade
and Industry of Norway

February 2010

01/02/2010 08:41

INTRODUCTION

Sea, mountains
and fjords

I

n recent years, Norway has experienced its
strongest economic expansion since the 1950s.
This is thanks to its vast wealth of petroleum
resources, and its development as one of the
most important gas- and oil-exporting nations.
The discovery of oil and gas on its continental shelf
in the late 1960s boosted Norway’s economic
fortunes. Indeed, Norway has the highest human
development index in the world in the latest UNDP
Human Development Report.
The Norwegian economy is a prosperous bastion
of welfare capitalism, featuring a combination of
free-market and government activity.The country is
richly endowed with natural resources (petroleum,
hydropower, fish, forests and minerals).The petroleum
sector accounts for more than half of exports and more
than 30% of state revenue.
Norway is the world’s third-largest gas exporter
and seventh-largest oil exporter. Mineral-based
products, including metals produced using imported
ore, accounted for around 8% of exports in 2008.
In anticipation of eventual declines in oil and gas
production, Norway saves almost all state revenue
from the petroleum sector in a sovereign wealth fund.
GDP growth was 2.5-6.2% in 2004-07, partly due to
higher oil prices, but fell to 2.6% in 2008 as a result of
the slowing world economy and the drop in oil prices.
In November 1994, Norway opted to stay out of the
EU. Nonetheless, as a member of the European
Economic Area, it contributes to the EU budget.

80N 0

70N 0

DIVERSITY
Norway is a long country, reaching from an idyllic
rocky coast with skerries in the south, over 1,700km
to a wild, untamed meeting between land and sea in
the north, and, even further north, half-way to the
North Pole, the Svalbard archipelago.
Life in the capital of Oslo or in the Hanseatic city
of Bergen on the west coast, and in a coastal fishing
village in the Arctic, are two very different worlds.
Along the west coast, travellers can experience an
untouched wilderness where mountainsides drop
hundreds of metres into world-famous fjords. Small
farms are spread out in the countryside.
Further north, Norway can offer wildlife safaris to
see whales and sea eagles. During the summer, the sun
never sets in northern Norway, and in winter the
magical northern lights often light up the night sky.
The northern-most point on the European mainland
is North Cape. Oslo is roughly halfway between the
North Cape and Rome. Geographically, the northerners
are closer to their neighbours in Sweden, Finland and
Russia, than they are to their countrymen in the south.

Arctic

Circle

INVESTMENT IN NORWAY
‘Innovation Norway’ promotes nationwide industrial
development profitable to both business and to
Norway’s economy.The organisation, which has offices
in over 30 countries, helps release the potential of
different districts and regions by contributing towards
innovation, internationalisation and promotion.
Information on establishing a business in Norway can
be found at: www.bedin.no/cwindex2eng.html, or www.
innovasjonnorge.no/system/Global-toppmeny/English.

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GEOLOGY AND MINERAL POTENTIAL

Photo: Halfdan Carstens

New deposits in old rocks

The North Cape Minerals plant on Stjernøy
in north Norway, one of the world’s largest
producers of nepheline syenite

T

he geology of mainland
Norway is dominated by
the Caledonide Orogen,
which extends over
1,500km from Stavanger
in the southwest to the northernmost
part of the country.
Within the Caledonides there
are windows of mainly Mesoand Palaeoproterozoic rocks,
predominantly granitoids, but also
including supracrustal sequences.
Archaean and Palaeoproterozoic rocks
of the Fennoscandian Shield are
exposed west of the Caledonides in
northernmost Norway and southeast
of the Caledonides along the borders
with Finland and Russia.
Southeastern Norway is dominated
by Mesoproterozoic rocks and by the
Oslo Graben, which contains volcanic
and intrusive complexes spanning the
period from Late Carboniferous to
Early Triassic, emplaced into a sequence
of Cambro-Silurian sediments. There
are almost no exposures on land of the
Mesozoic and Tertiary sequences on
the continental shelf, which host the
hydrocarbon resources that are a vital
element in the Norwegian economy.
Norway’s landscape has been
sculpted in recent times, with major

4

uplift in the Tertiary followed by
glaciation and much direct evidence of
neotectonic activity.
Svalbard, half-way between the north
of Norway and the North Pole, lies
between 74°N and 81°N. Its geology
includes Lower Tertiary coal seams that
have been mined for almost 100 years
(see page 10). The Svalbard Treaty,
signed in 1920 by 39 countries, granted
Norway sovereignty of the archipelago
but gave the right to own property,
including mineral rights, to nationals of
all the signatory countries.

METAL DEPOSITS
■ Iron ore: Important deposits
occur in:
1) The Archaean banded-iron
formations (BIF) in Sør-Varanger, near
the border with Russia, and
2) The Neoproterozoic sedimentary
sequences in the Caledonide Orogen,
especially those close to Mo i Rana.
The Sør-Varanger ores were
discovered in 1866 and were mined
from 1907 to 1996. Total remaining
reserves are 395Mt, containing
30-35% Fe.
A Norwegian-Australian company,
Northern Iron Ltd (www.northerniron.



com.au) commenced mining operations
in mid-2009 with a planned production
level of 7Mt/y over a period of 19 years
from three of 23 deposits, within a
strike length of 12km.
Representative ore from past
production contained 40-60% quartz,
40-50% magnetite and 0-10%
hornblende. The deposit is connected
to the deep-water port of Kirkenes by
an 8km railway.
The iron-ore deposits in the
Dunderlandsdal valley north of Mo i
Rana were known in the 18th century.
An open-pit mine was established in
1902, and in 1961 the operation was
incorporated into A/S Norsk Jernverk, a
fully integrated pig-iron producer.
Pig-iron production ceased in 1989,
but the mining company Rana Gruber
had, by then, developed several
speciality products based on iron ore:
powder metallurgy, coal washing, water
purification and chemical/technical uses.
In 1990, Rana Gruber became the
first company in the world to produce
advanced natural black iron-oxide
pigments from magnetite
superconcentrates.
Total production up to the present is
around 100Mt, grading 33-37% Fe. Two
main ore horizons, from a few metres

to 30m thick, have been found, an
upper magnetite-haematite ore,
containing 0.15-0.3% P, and a lower
apatite-bearing magnetite ore
containing 0.8-1% P. Rana Gruber is
now a subsidiary of Leonhard Nilsen &
Sons (see page 11).
■ Copper-zinc (-lead): The first
massive sulphide mine in Norway was
opened before 1500 in the
Mesoproterozoic Kongsberg district,
which is famous for its native silver
deposits. Most old mines are in the
volcanic successions of the
Caledonides, in which mining goes back
to circa 1630.
The most important districts, in
terms of the tonnage mined and grades,
have been Sulitjelma (25Mt grading
1.8% Cu and 0.9% Zn from 11
deposits), Joma and other deposits in
the Grong district (17.5Mt grading 1.4%
Cu and 1.8% Zn, from three deposits),
Mofjellet and Bleikvassli south of Mo i
Rana (9.35Mt grading 3.8% Zn, 0.22%
Cu and 1.4% Pb), Røros (7.5Mt, from 12
mines in 333 years, grading around 3%
Cu and 4.5% Zn), Folldal (4.45Mt
grading 1.4% Cu and 2.6% Zn produced
from four mines), and two larger
deposits, Tverrfjellet and Løkken, which

February 2010

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February 2010



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01/02/2010 08:44

produced 15Mt (1.0% Cu, 1.2% Zn,
0.2% Pb, 36% S) and 24Mt (2.3% Cu,
1.8% Zn, 0.02% Pb, 16g/t Ag and 0.2g/t
Au), respectively.
Deposits hosted by felsic volcanics,
volcaniclastics and sediments are
generally richer in metals than those in
mafic volcanics but are not necessarily
larger. There is still a large potential for
economic sulphide deposits in the
Caledonides.
Prospecting is in progress in the
volcano-sedimentary Rana district,
where Gexco (see page 14) has a
number of claims. Scandinavian
Resources Ltd, an Australian company,
is investigating the potential for massive
sulphides in the Hattfjelldal area 50km
to the south.
■ Copper-gold: Several large,
low-grade stratabound and epigenetic
copper-gold mineralisations occur in
Palaeoproterozoic greenstone belts in
Finnmark in northernmost Norway. The
supracrustal sequences comprise
tholeiitic to komatiitic metavolcanic
rocks and clastic metasediments
deposited during extensional events.
In the Repparfjord tectonic window,
disseminations and veinlets of

chalcopyrite, bornite and chalcocite
occur in sandstone in the Ulveryggen
deposit and in dolomite, schist and
sandstone in the Nussir deposit (see
page 13). At Ulveryggen, 3Mt at 0.66%
Cu was produced from an original
reserve of 10Mt between 1972 and 1979.
Orogenic gold-copper deposits are
widespread in northern Fennoscandia.
The Bidjovagge copper-gold mine
yielded 6t gold and 24,000t copper
from 1985 to 1991, averaging 4.1g/t
gold and 1.19% copper. It comprises
several small orebodies totalling 1.7Mt
crude ore of chalcopyrite, native gold
and locally subordinate gold telluride.
The mineralisations occur in strongly
sheared, albitised graphitic sedimentary
and volcaniclastic rocks, with spatially
associated syenodioritic dikes, in the
Kautokeino Greenstone Belt.
The extensive Raitevarre deposit, in
the Karasjok Greenstone Belt,
comprises low-grade copper-gold
mineralisations in altered, sheared
hornblende gneiss. In the
Palaeoproterozoic sequences, several
deposits of copper-gold in carbonatequartz veins are found.These minor but
high-grade mineralisations mainly occur
in shear zones in basaltic metavolcanites.

■ Gold: Concentrations of gold
grading over 1g/t are found in almost
all genetic types of ore deposits in
Norway, and as alluvial gold in rivers in
all the geological provinces. However,
no sizeable deposit has yet been found
except Bidjovagge (see above). The total
amount of gold produced since 1750 is
about 12t, including gold extracted
metallurgically as by-product from
sulphide concentrates from ores in the
Caledonides.
Known deposits are mainly
shear-zone- and quartz-vein-hosted
orogenic gold deposits. These
structurally-controlled deposits are
related to the development of the
Svecofennian (2.0-1.9Ga),
Sveconorwegian (1.1-0.9Ga) and
Caledonian (0.4Ga) orogenies. Alluvial
deposits occur locally, for example in
the Karasjok Greenstone Belt.
Sizeable deposits include the
above-mentioned Bidjovagge and
Raitevarre copper-gold deposits and
the Gjeddevann gold-arsenic deposit
close to the Russian border: it consists
of sulphide mineralisation extending
several kilometres along strike, with
gold grades extending up to 10g/t.
The Sveconorwegian deposits are

mainly small mineralised quartz veins
that become auriferous in sulphidebearing segments representing the
orebodies. These contain variable
proportions of pyrite, chalcopyrite,
bismuth sulphides and native gold, eg in
the quartz veins of Eidsvoll, near Oslo.
The gold grades reach several
hundred grammes per tonne but the
tonnages are under 0.1Mt. The Grinder
deposit and others northeast of Oslo
are a different type, associated with
pyritised phyllonitic sericite schists,
related to a regional mylonite zone
extending northwards from
Gothenburg in Sweden. The grades
are generally low, around 0.5g/t Au,
but the tonnages are large.
The Caledonian orogen includes
deposits mainly of Early Devonian age.
They are mineralised quartz veins and
shear zones:
1) Within and marginal to basement
culminations; and
2) In the contact zone of OrdovicianSilurian granite batholiths.
The latter type is more important.
Deposits associated with the Bindal
Batholith in Nordland include
pyrrhotite-rich gold-tungsten skarn

Photo: Morten Often

Archaean banded iron ore at the Sydvaranger mine.

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February 2010

01/02/2010 08:44

deposits as in Hattfjelldal and
gold-aresnic vein deposits, for example
Kolsvik. The latter deposit is being
investigated by Gexco AB (see page 14).
■ Molybdenum: Molybdenum
deposits in old mining districts and in
new areas are being evaluated using
new ideas and deposit models. About
200 molybdenite deposits/occurrences
are registered in South Norway, in the
Meso-/Neoproterozoic
Sveconorwegian terrane and in the
Permian Oslo Graben.
In the Sveconorwegian terrane,
molybdenite occurs in both
metamorphogenic and in intraexomagmatic quartz-feldspar veins –
porphyry-style mineralisations may also
exist. Molybdenite was mined at Knaben
from 1885 to 1973, in total about 8Mt
grading 0.2% MoS2. A pilot-scale
operation is being carried out at this
deposit.
Molybdenite in intraplutonic veins
was mined in the Oslo Graben from
1915 to 1945. Extensive molybdenum
exploration was carried out in the
Graben in the 1970s, with the Nordli
porphyry-style deposit as the main
discovery (see page 15).
■ Nickel-copper: Nickel was mined
for 100 years until two mines were
closed at the end of WWII. Thereafter
there have been several periods of
active prospecting, especially in the
1970s. Xstrata has a nickel refinery in
south Norway, opened in 1910 on the
basis of available hydroelectric power
and then active mines. One new
deposit, Bruvann, in the Råna intrusion
30km SW of Narvik, was mined from
1989-2003.
Nickel-copper mineralisation occurs
in three main settings:
1) In mafic intrusions and metavolcanic
units in Palaeoproterozoic units in
north Norway;
2) In numerous, usually small, mafic/
ultramafic intrusions in the
Mesoproterozoic of south Norway; and
3) In small to medium-sized mafic
intrusions, some of them layered
(including Råna), in the Caledonides.
The mineralisation in the Gallujavri
Ni-Cu-PGE sulphide-bearing ultramafic
intrusion in Finnmark in north Norway
resembles that of the 2050 Ma
Keivitsä-Satovaara Complex in Finland.
A 2.5km-long nickel-copper mineralised
zone shows assays up to 2.45ppm
Pt+Pd+Au. Geochemical and
geophysical data are available and cores
from eight drillholes.
The Espedalen mineralisation is one
of numerous nickel-copper
mineralisations in Mesoproterozoic

February 2010


intrusions in south Norway – the
claims are held by Blackstone Ventures
(www.blv.ca/s/Home.asp). The area
includes two targets suggesting “a
potential for large-tonnage, moderategrade nickel deposits, amenable to
low-cost, open-cast mining”.
The Bruvann mineralisation occurs
mainly as interstitial sulphide in olivine
cumulate in the Silurian intraorogenic
Råna layered mafic intrusion. Mining
yielded 8.5Mt grading 0.52% Ni and
0.1% Cu. The PGE content of the
mineralisation is abnormally low. Claims
are currently held by Scandinavian
Highlands (http://scandinavian-highlands.
com/), which states that remaining
measured resources are 9.15Mt
averaging 0.36% Ni (cut-off 0.30% Ni)
or alternatively 5.5Mt grading 0.39% Ni
(cut-off 0.35% Ni).
■ REE and special metals:
The present knowledge of these
deposits is primarily based on data
collected during exploration for
uranium, beryllium or niobium
mineralisations, and from the quarrying
of quartz and feldspar in pegmatites.
The geological settings in which
special-metal mineralisations occur are
related both to magmatic and
metasomatic processes:
1) Metasomatic albitites with special
metal mineralisations in Palaeoproterozoic greenstone belts in north
Norway and in Mesoproterozoic
gabbroic sills in south Norway. The
Biggejavri deposit in the Kautokeino
Greenstone Belt is enriched in both
LREE and HREE, scandium and
uranium.
2) Highly-fractionated Palaeoproterozoic granitic orthogneisses in
basement windows in the Caledonides
in north Norway. Allanite, LREEbearing titanite and fluorite are the
most common REE-minerals. The
Høgtuva Be deposit is also enriched in
REE, uranium and zirconium.
3) NYF-type granite pegmatites with
accessory REE-, Nb-Ta-, Ti-, Be-, Thand/or U-bearing minerals occur in the
Sveconorwegian orogenic belt in
southern Norway and in the
Palaeoproterozoic granites in north
Norway. Enrichments of lithium,
rubidium, tin and tantalum occur in
pegmatites in south Norway and in the
Caledonides in central Norway.
4) The Fen carbonatite southwest of
Oslo carries low-grade niobium ores
and REE- and Th-enriched iron-oxide
ores which were mined in the past.
5) Alkaline to peralkaline plutonic and
volcanic rocks in the Oslo Graben are
generally enriched in REE, niobium,
thorium and/or zirconium. In the
Sæteråsen deposit, fine-grained

The Tana quartz sandstone quarry, in northernmost Norway,
operated by LNS on behalf of Elkem (see page 11)

disseminations of complex REE-Nb-Th
silicates and oxides occur in trachytic
lava.

INDUSTRIAL MINERALS
■ Carbonates: Some 7.3Mt of
various calcite and dolomite products
was produced in 2008, based on 16
mining operations from a spectrum of
carbonate types, ranging from
non-metamorphic limestone to
high-grade metamorphic calcite
marbles and dolomites metamorphosed
during the Caledonian orogeny. In
general, reserves and resources are
very large.
Production of ground calcium
carbonate (GCC, calcite slurry) takes
place at the Hustadmarmor processing
plant at Elnesvågen on the western
coast of south Norway; the raw
material is provided by nearby mines as
well as from a mine near Brønnøysund
in central, north Norway. Another
producer of GCC, Norkalsitt, operates
a small underground mine within a
high-purity calcite marble at Hestvika,
central Norway.
Fine-grained graphitic carbonate
suitable for production of lime and
precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC)
is mined near Verdal in central Norway
in two operations,Verdalskalk and
Frøseth.
Cement producer Norcem, a part of
the Heidelberg Group, operates two
cement plants – at Brevik in south
Norway and at Kjøpsvik in north
Norway. Both use carbonate raw
material from nearby mines.
Two companies produce dolomite in
northern Norway, Norwegian Holding
from three deposits, Hammerfall,
Løvgavlen and Seljeli, while Franzefoss
Miljøkalk operates the Hekkelstrand
deposit.
■ Nepheline syenite: Norway has
been a significant producer of nepheline
syenite since the 1960s – production in

2008 was 346,000t. The mine, at
Stjernøy, near Alta in the northernmost
part of the country, is operated by
North Cape Minerals (www.ncm.no).
The deposit is a lens shaped body of
nepheline syenite which is part of a 530
Ma-old alkaline igneous complex within
the Caledonian nappe sequence. The
end-products are potassium- and
nepheline-rich concentrates, to be used
in the glass and ceramics industries.
■ Olivine: Olivine production in
Norway (2.5Mt/a in 2008) is 40% of
world production of industrial-grade
olivine. Three out of four olivine mines
suspended production because of a
decline in demand in late 2009 –the
remaining mine, operated by North
Cape Minerals, exploits a dunite body
at Almklovdalen, near Åheim in west
Norway. Of the production, 75% is used
for slag conditioning in the iron and
steel industry, the remainder is used in
the foundry industry and for a variety
of refractory applications.
The olivine resources at
Almklovdalen probably exceed 2,000Mt.
The dunite bodies in the Åheim/
Almklovdalen area are believed to
represent very old mantle fragments
incorporated into the crust in the early
Proterozoic, and then affected by
Proterozoic and Phanerozoic
(Caledonian) metamorphic events
which recrystallised and ‘purified’ the
olivine.
■ Silica: Silica resources in Norway
comprise quartzite, hydrothermal
quartz and pegmatite deposits. Total
production of silica is about 1Mt, mainly
as lump-quartz for domestic use.
Elkem is the largest producer of
lump quartz, with two quarries, one in
Neoproterozoic quartz sandstones at
Tana in the north-easternmost part of
Norway (with LNS as operator – see
page 11) and the other within
Caledonian orthoquartzites at Mårnes,


7

02/02/2010 07:59


■ Talc: The only talc-producing mine,
Altermark, near Mo i Rana in north
Norway, operated by Norwegian Talc, is
to be closed in the near future. However,
talc resources in Norway are very large.
Of particular interest are Raudfjellet in
central Norway and Linnajavri in central
north Norway, both related to ultramafic
parts of Caledonian ophiolite complexes.
Linnajavri contains >100Mt of talc-rich
soapstone within a number of
neighbouring bodies.

TITANIUM MINERALS
Norway and Ukraine are the only
Ti-mineral producing countries in
Europe.The only deposit presently in
production, mined by Titania AS (see
page 12), is the world-class Tellenes
ilmenite deposit (also known as Tellnes)
in the Rogaland Anorthosite Province
(922-932 Ma) in southwest Norway. It is
an ilmenite-rich norite intrusion within
anorthosite, with reserves greater than
300Mt, with 30% ilmenite.
The neighbouring BjerkreimSokndal norite-mangerite layered
intrusion contains ore-grade
enrichments of vanadiferous
magnetite, ilmenite and apatite
within the layered sequence.
Rutile-bearing eclogite, formed by
high-pressure metamorphism during
the Caledonian orogeny, represents a
new type of deposit. The Engebøfjellet
deposit in West Norway is presently
being developed by Nordic Mining
(see page 14).

8

New Mineral Act

T

HE Directorate of
Mining is the central
authority for mining,
quarrying and mineral
management in Norway.
Its main tasks are:
■ The issuing of mineral rights
according to the Mineral Act;
■ Supervision of mining and quarrying
activities in Norway;
■ Giving advice to the central
government on mineral policy; and
■ Playing a vital role in the zone
planning of mineral resources.

The Directorate has the power to
request consideration of any zoning
plan regarding mineral deposits by the
central government.
The new Mineral Act came into
force on January 1, 2010. It merges five
older mineral and mining-related acts.
The new act will make it easier for the
mineral community to get a better
overview of legal requirements
regarding mineral exploration and
mining.
The regime regarding claimable
minerals (minerals vested in the state)
has not been changed dramatically, but
the system of acquisition has been
modernised. Older exploration areas
with a maximum size of 300,000m2
have been replaced with areas with a
maximum of 10km2. Companies may
apply for as many contiguous areas as
desired. New rules regarding the fees
for exploration areas were also in place
from January 1.
Compared with the previous rule,
there is a significant reduction of the
area fees for the first three years,
followed by an increase in the cost
thereafter, allowing the
holder to explore
larger areas in the
Distribution of exploration
licences, late 2009

If a mining concession is given, the
holder will have full security of tenure
for as long as the mine is continuously
running. The holder of an exploration
or an exploitation licence is given
quarantine for the area for one year
when the licence expires or, in other
ways, is lost.
The prospector is obliged to submit
a full report of the work done in the
exploration area together with a
representative selection of core
samples when the licences expire.
The report and core-samples are
open to the public, thus providing new
prospectors with valuable geological
information at no cost.

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initial phase of a project at a lower cost.
In Norway, elements with a specific
gravity of �5 are vested in the state.
Titanium and arsenic are also vested in
the state, as is sulphur (in the form of
pyrite and pyrrhotite).
An exploration licence is given for a
maximum period of seven years. If the
holder of the licence is able to prove
the existence of a deposit of claimable
minerals that is, or in the near future
probably will be, feasible to mine
economically, the holder may apply for
an exploitation permit.
The exploitation permit is valid for
ten years without an application for a
mining concession.

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The open-air mining
museum at Skuterud, where
cobalt-copper ores were
mined from 1778 to 1898

Photo: Jan Sandstad

near Bodø, Nordland. The lump quartz
is mainly used by Elkem and Fesil in
production of ferrosilicon.
Elkem is also a major producer of
silicon metal, mainly based on imported
raw materials, but is presently
investigating a deposit of silicon-metal
quality hydrothermal quartz at Saltfjellet
north of Mo i Rana in Nordland county.
Eramet Norway AS controls quarries
near Kragerø where lump-quartz from
Mesoproterozoic orthoquartzites is
produced for company smelters
manufacturing silicon manganese.
Quartz concentrate is produced by
North Cape Minerals at Lillesand in
south Norway, and by Norwegian
Crystallites at Drag, south of Narvik.The
Lillesand quarry is in densely spaced
bodies of pegmatitic granite of late
Mesoproterozoic age.The raw material
is processed to yield high-quality
concentrates of potassic and sodic
feldspar, as well as quartz for the glass
and ceramics industries. Norwegian
Crystallites (see page 13) produces
high-purity quartz, based on mining of
granitic pegmatites of Palaeoproterozoic
age.The company also receives
shipments of quartz from other deposits.

February 2010

01/02/2010 08:45

PROFILE

Norsk Bergindustri: The
Norwegian Mining and
Quarrying Industries
interests.
Norsk Bergindustri is open for membership from
companies that prospect for, produce, manage or
process mineral resources in Norway, or companies
that are otherwise related to this industry, such as
equipment suppliers.
Mining has a long tradition in Norway.Today, however,
mineral products are taken for granted. Nevertheless,
minerals follow us through life – from the sandbox to
the mobile phone to the tombstone. Norway has a high
usage of minerals per capita, due in part to the country’s
climate. Norsk Bergindustri’s main task is to inform
society about the need for mineral products.
The association aims to be the focal point for
discussions about mining and quarrying in Norway,

including certain aspects of mineral processing. Its
vision is to achieve a strong and united Norwegian
mining and quarrying industry, with stated core values
of being “long-term, inclusive and brave”.
The association has adopted a code of ethics, the
purpose of which is to help ensure that its members
play a positive role in society. This code can be found
on its website (www.norskbergindustri.no). Norsk
Bergindustri’s main priorities are to be represented in
Europe, to influence decision-makers, to host activities
which its members find relevant, and to complete the
establishment of the association by working efficiently.
The association’s goals are: to promote the members’
interests by increasing positive visibility and understanding for mining and quarrying activities; to maintain and
develop suitable and just framework conditions; to
create a good balance between economic, environmental and social responsibility; to secure suitable
competence for the industry; to encourage good
meeting arenas; and to develop a good industry culture.

Photo: Tom Heldal

E

stablished in 2008, Norsk Bergindustri is
based on three older associations with
strong traditions in the mining, aggregates
and natural stone industries that decided
to join forces to promote their members’

Photo: Halfdan Carstens

Above: Larvikite, Norway’s national rock, is found as a facing
stone in prestigious buildings around the globe. Below: North
Cape Minerals olivine quarry at Åheim, the world’s largest
producer of industrial-mineral grade olivine.

February 2010

09Norway1002.indd 9


9

01/02/2010 08:44

PROFILE

Store Norske: Arctic
technology for the 21st Century

S

tore Norske Spitsbergen Grubekompani AS
(www.snsk.no/internet) has mined coal on
the archipelago of Svalbard since 1916.
Almost 100 years of mining at 78°N has
given the company expertise in the
development and use of technology and logistics for
Arctic conditions that few others, if any, can match.
Store Norske’s head office is at Longyearbyen
(78°N). Two mines are currently operating – Mine
7 in Advent Valley, close to Longyearbyen, and Svea
Nord in Van Mijen Fjord, 60km to the south. Around
2.5Mt/y is produced from Svea Nord, mainly for
export for power production in Denmark and
Germany. A further 75,000t/y is produced from
Mine 7, mainly for local power production.
The coal seam in Svea Nord is up to 5m thick
and is mined mainly by longwall working. The coal
is transported on a belt to the surface and then
by truck to the coal store at the harbour at Kapp
Amsterdam, 5km away.
The seam at Mine 7 averages 1.5m in thickness,
and is mined by room and pillar methods. The coal
is transported on a belt to the surface and then by
truck to Longyearbyen.
Modern mining demands the use of advanced
machinery, an efficient infrastructure and solid
experience. It also requires well-oiled logistics.
The challenges on Svalbard are greater than in
most parts of the globe.
At Svea, the company manages an airfield, harbour,
power station and a settlement – with a power supply,
waste systems and transport to a location completely
without link roads, on a fjord which is ice-covered for
half the year. Meeting these challenges successfully
calls for broad technological skills.
The company depends heavily on its particular

10


10Norway1002.indd 10

skills. Its knowledge of the geology of the Arctic and
of the technology needed to operate there has been
built in co-operation with the University Centre of
Svalbard, the Norwegian University of Science and
Technology and Stjørdal Technical College.
Store Norske is the main employer in Longyearbyen. Over 500 of a total of 1,200 workers in the
community depend directly on the company. The
stability and profitability of the mining company make
it the most important commercial activity on Svalbard.
Store Norske has extensive exploration activities
on Svalbard and in north Norway. The company drills
4,000-5,000m annually in its search for new
Palaeogene coal seams in the Central Basin on the
main island, Spitsbergen.

Photo: Malte Jochmann

Permafrost and drilling through moraine
and glaciers create particular challenges
for prospecting on Svalbard.

The company is also drilling gold mineralisation in
the Tertiary Fold Belt in west Spitsbergen. Environmental regulations dictate that all exploration activity
must take place in the winter.
The challenges of the Arctic night, permafrost and
drilling through moraine and glaciers necessitate
specific skills, which the company has developed over
several decades.
Store Norske’s exploration in north Norway is
concentrated on the northwest part of the
Fennoscandian Shield, with a focus on gold in the
Karasjok Greenstone Belt. Systematic geophysical,
geochemical and geological work has led to the identification of several targets, and drilling has begun on
these sites.

Svalbard
Archipelago

February 2010

01/02/2010 08:43

PROFILE

LNS mining operations:
From Pole to Pole

L

NS (http://www.lns.no/) operates mines
on its own behalf, and on contract with
others. LNS has also recently
implemented several major construction
projects, including the new iron-ore
terminal in Narvik in north Norway.
International experience includes completed
projects on Iceland, Greenland and Antarctica, an
operation in Chile, and a major tunnelling project in
Hong Kong.
The company is part of the LNS group, whose
core areas of activity are:
■ Tunnels, rock caverns;
■ Road construction;
■ Mining contracts;
■ Rockslide protection, shotcrete injection;
■ Earth moving;
■ Concrete production; and
■ Manufacturing of wooden modules and elements.
In 2009, the LNS group had some 800 employees
and a turnover of over US$300 million.

COAL MINING ON SVALBARD
LNS Spitsbergen was hired in 2000 by Store Norske
Spitsbergen Grubekompani AS (see page 10) to
provide logistics services at the Svea Nord coal mine.
The primary assignment is to transport coal from
the mine to the Kapp Amsterdam storage area, as well
as to load the coal onto ships.
LNS Spitsbergen is also responsible for
transporting goods, fuel and machinery, as well as

building everything from roads and quay facilities to
accommodation and offices. Every year, 2-4Mt of coal
is moved out, and a further 1 million m3 of earth is
excavated.
LNS Spitsbergen is in charge of the bulldozer runs
between Svea and Longyearbyen, a distance of around
70km. These bulldozer runs are extremely challenging,
as they take place under extreme climatic conditions,
in 24-hour darkness, and are subject to frequent visits
by polar bears.
LNS Spitsbergen also built a transport tunnel to
facilitate coal transport through an area where the
coal previously had to be transported across a glacier.

QUARTZITE QUARRY
Austertana is home to one of the largest quartzite
quarries in the world. LNS is under contract with
Elkem Tana to extract quartzite for the ferrosilicon
industry worldwide.
The quarry located at a height of around 350m,

which is considered alpine this far north. The access
road from the quarry to the quay facility has a
gradient of 1:7, which is highly demanding on both
crew and equipment.
The quartzite is transported from the quarry to
the crushing mill 40m above sea level. This transport
road is described by equipment manufacturers as the
“world’s toughest”.

RANA GRUBER IRON MINE
Rana Gruber AS supplies European steel mills with
iron-ore concentrates suitable for sinter and pellet
production and also produces numerous special
products (www.ranagruber.no).
After more than 30 years of open-pit mining, Rana
Gruber started underground mining in 1999 using the
open-stope method at the Kvannevann mine.
Mining operations here have been continuously
improved and further developed to suit the difficult
rock conditions in the area and to cut operation
costs.
A combination of low-grade iron ore with, on
average, 33% iron and significant mechanical challenges
in the rock (high horizontal tension), has made mining
extraordinarily challenging. A decision was taken in
2008 to switch to sublevel caving for the underground
Kvannevann mine.
The new mining method will secure ore supply
there until 2025 at 3Mt/y. The proven mineable
reserves for the mine and surrounding areas
guarantee continued operation for many decades to
come.

SKALAND GRAPHITE

Tunnelling in permafrost under a glacier on Svalbard

February 2010


Graphite mining at Skaland, southwest of Tromsø in
north Norway, began in 1936 on a vein-type
crystalline graphite deposit. In 2003, the company
opened the Trælen deposit with proven reserves of
1.7Mt of high-grade graphite ore.
Modern mining techniques and a new
dressing plant at the shore of the fjord guarantee
a consistent production of Silvershine products, which
are exported to customers in Central
Europe.
Today, Skaland Graphite is the last remaining
producer of crystalline graphite in Europe, with an
annual capacity of up to 10,000t of flake and
micro-flake powder graphite.


11

01/02/2010 08:43

PROFILE

White pigment from
a black mineral

T

HE mining company Titania AS (www.
titania.no/) was formed in 1902, and
has been owned by the US company
Kronos World Wide Inc (former
National Lead Ltd) since 1927. Titania
was the first company in the world to extract
ilmenite for production of white pigment.
Two major ilmenite resources have been mined by
Titania in the Sokndal region of southwest Norway.
Until 1965, ilmenite was extracted by underground
mining at the Storgangen deposit at Sandbekk. When
a larger deposit, the Tellenes orebody (also called
Tellnes), was discovered, the activity was moved
there.
The ore is upgraded to pure ilmenite on site,
where excess minerals are removed through
gravimetric separation, magnetic separation and
flotation. The ilmenite concentrate is sold as a
feedstock to pigment factories for making highquality pigment. The ilmenite is further reduced to
pure TiO2 by chemically removing iron.
The white-pigment titanium dioxide is used in a
variety of products ranging from paper and paint to

cosmetics and foods. By-products from the process
at Titania are a magnetite concentrate and a sulphide
concentrate rich in copper, nickel and cobalt. Titania
has 260 employees and a number of external
contractors working at the facility.

extended to 40m below sea level. This expansion will
more than double the pit size. The estimated tonnage
extracted from 2007 through 2070 will be 200Mt of
ore.

MINING ACTIVITY AT TELLENES

Anorthosite is one of the few rock-types in which
there are near-mono-minerallic concentrations of
feldspar, in this case anorthite. Massive ilmenitebearing ore deposits, like the Tellenes orebody, are
not uncommon in Proterozoic anorthosites such as
the host complex, called the Egersund anorthosite,
which covers about 500km2.
Roughly 5Mt/y of anorthosite are now
excavated as part of Titania’s current open-pit
operation at Tellenes. This anorthosite has good,
well documented, properties. These make it ideal,
for example, as an insulator or concrete enhancer.
Anorthosite also contains roughly 26% Al2O3,
making it suitable for other purposes.
The deposit is large and located near the coast,
and is a short distance by sea to the major European
markets. The anorthosite deposit at Tellenes is
therefore a potentially valuable by-product.

The orebody at Tellenes is the second largest known
ilmenite deposit in the world, with 110Mt of ore
mined through 2008, known reserves of 200Mt and
375Mt of possible reserves. The mining operation is
based on long-term mine planning and investment.
Titania is currently operating with a mine plan up to
2070.
Mining began at 240m above sea level in 1960. By
2007 the depth of the pit had reached 50m above sea
level, extending 2.7km in an east-west direction and
some 500m wide.
In 2007, Titania started the work of expanding the
current pit further east. This project is commonly
referred to as the Tellenes East project.
The extended pit will enable Titania to access
ore in the eastern part of the deposit. At the same
time the current pit will be

ANORTHOSITE

The Tellenes open pit

12



February 2010

01/02/2010 08:43

PROFILE

Nussir: Norway’s next copper mine?

N

USSIR ASA (www.nussir.no) was
established in 2005 to develop the
Nussir and other nearby copper
deposits in Kvalsund municipality,
near Hammerfest in north Norway.
Nussir is one of Norway’s major undeveloped
copper deposits, and exploration has demonstrated
that, as well as copper, the ore contains valuable
amounts of gold, silver, platinum and palladium.
The deposit offers excellent prospects of an early
mine start – given the already existing infrastructure
close to a deep-sea ice-free port, major highway,
high-power lines and an industrial area under
development nearby. The company holds 100%
interest in the exploration and mining rights, and
has positive dialogue with the local community.
The deposit, discovered in 1979, was mapped at the
surface and sparsely drilled over a strike length of
9km in the 1980s and 1990s.
The founder of Nussir ASA acquired the
exploration and mining rights in 2000, and an
extensive drilling programme commenced in 2006. In
all, 109 holes with total length of 15,600m have been
drilled.
A detailed helicopter-borne geophysical survey and,
locally, ground geophysics were also conducted.
Recovery tests have been carried out, and a scoping
study was completed in December 2009.

The indicated and inferred resource so far is
25.5Mt, comprising 1.16% Cu with additional values of
Au and PGE: the deposit is still open to the west, east
and at depth.
The Nussir deposit is located in a
Palaeoproterozoic supracrustal sequence in the
Repparfjord Tectonic Window within the prolific
Fennoscandian Shield. This sequence comprises
metavolcanic rocks varying in composition from
calc-alkaline to tholeiitic, and clastic metasediments

deposited during extensional events.
The copper mineralisation occurs in a thin
sequence of dolomite, schist and sandstone on
top of a 2.5km-thick package of coarse clastic
metasediments. The mineralised horizon is about 9km
along strike, dips at 50-60º and has an average width
of 3-4m. It has been drilled to around 500m below the
surface. The copper mineralisation consists of
disseminations and veinlets of chalcopyrite, bornite
and chalcocite.
The host rock and mineralogy vary along strike. In
the west, chalcopyrite dominates in dolomite. In the
east, bornite and chalcocite are found in schist and
sandstone with accompanying elevated contents of
precious metals.
Genetically, the deposit has a resemblance to other
major sediment-hosted copper deposits such as those
in the Copperbelt in Central Africa and the
Kupferschiefer in Central Europe.
The sandstone-hosted Ulveryggen copper deposit
in the lower part of the clastic sequence further
substantiates this correlation.
It was mined in the 1970s and is currently being
re-evaluated. Both deposits are variably deformed, and
preliminary structural studies allow an alternative
interpretation of the genesis of these copper
mineralisations, with a tectonically-controlled primary
deposition.

Norwegian Crystallites: Production
of high-purity crystal quartz

T

HE Norwegian Crystallites Drag plant is
situated in the mountainous Tysfjord
area in Nordland County, northern
Norway, within sight of the mountain
Stetind, (as shown on the outside cover).
The company (www.norcryst.no) mines quartz
deposits of high purity at several locations. This raw
material is cleaned for production of high-standard
crystal quartz products.
Norwegian Crystallites has produced high-purity
quartz products at the Drag plant since 1996. The
company has grown rapidly in recent years: its
ambition is to be a stable, reliable supplier of
advanced high-purity quartz material. Production
capacity is now being increased in order to serve the
growing solar industry. Quartz produced by

February 2010


High-purity quartz
Norwegian Crystallites is used in:
■ High-quality optical applications;
■ Tubes for halogen lamps;
■ Crucibles for silica-metal crystal drawing,
semiconductors and solar applications;
■ Optical fibres;

■ Quartz glass, tubes and rods;
■ Quartz wool;
■ Filler in electronics applications
(EMC filler with low radiation);
■ Silicon metal; and
■ Dental and cosmetic applications.


13

01/02/2010 08:42

PROFILE

Nordic Mining: A future in minerals

N

ordic Mining ASA (www.
nordicmining.com) is a minerals
development company with a
focus on high-end industrial
minerals and metals, in Norway
and internationally. It is listed on Oslo Axess with
ticker. NOM
Nordic Mining is undertaking one of the largest
mineral projects in Norway at Engebøfjellet in Sogn
and Fjordane county in western Norway, where it has
mining rights to a deposit of titanium-bearing eclogite.
Through its subsidiary Keliber Oy, Nordic Mining
plans to start mining of lithium-bearing spodumene
and production of lithium carbonate.
The company produces anorthosite from its
underground mine in Gudvangen in Norway, and has
several exploration rights in Scandinavia for
molybdenum, nickel, tungsten and platinum.

TITANIUM
Nordic Mining is developing a long-term industry for
the production of rutile concentrate from its deposit
at Engebøfjellet. Rutile (TiO2) is a strategic raw
material for production of titanium metal and
pigments used in the production of paintings, plastics,
healthcare and paper. The Engebø resource is
estimated to contain approximately 380Mt of ore
with an average grade of 4% TiO2.
The eclogite also contains garnet, which will be
produced as a by-product. Garnet is used as an
abrasive material for sand blasting, water-jet cutting,
etc. Nordic Mining has completed its proposal for
industrial development, including an environmental
impact assessment (EIA), and is now awaiting political
resolution with local municipalities.
The Engebø operation will represent a vital,
long-term industry in the Sunnfjord region.

LITHIUM
Through its subsidiary Keliber Oy in Finland,
Nordic Mining is developing mining and production

of high-purity lithium carbonate.
The demand for lithium carbonate has
increased in recent years. This trend is expected
to continue, mainly driven by strong growth in the
battery sector as a consequence of increased sales
of electrified and hybrid cars, portable tools
and batteries for other industrial applications.
Lithium, in combination with other minerals/
materials, brings unique properties to modern
batteries.

ANORTHOSITE
Nordic Mining produces 250,000t/y of anorthosite
through its subsidiary Gudvangen Stein AS, which
holds the rights to vast resources of anorthosite
in one of Europe’s largest anorthosite massifs.
Products include feedstocks for production
of mineral wool, colour additives for asphalt top
layers and decorative stone. Gudvangen Stein
is also developing anorthosite concentrates for
various applications.

Gexco: Gold and zinc with high potential

G

exco AB (www.gexco.se) is focused
on developing mineral resources in
northern Norway. It owns exploration
and mining permits for gold in Bindal,
and for copper, lead, zinc, silver and
gold near Mo i Rana, and for gold near Narvik.
Gexco is currently geared to developing what it
describes as its “most promising” gold project: Kolsvik
in Bindal, where a test-mining campaign on 2,000t gave
an average head grade into the mill of
5.6g/t, including dilution.
The 2,000t were mined as
a 5x4m2 tunnel along the
mineralisation.The
gold-bearing structures
are almost vertical
and have been
intersected by
drilling down to
The first gold produced
200m from the
by Gexco from the
surface.
Kolsvik mine

14



One of Gexco’s main advantages is the existing
small-scale 8t/hr processing plant at Bindal, which
can produce a saleable gold concentrate. The plant
is based on advanced gravity technology from Knelson
in Canada.
Further development at Kolsvik is planned to
include an underground tunnelling and drilling
programme to boost resources and reserves during
spring 2010.
Another campaign of ore processing is planned
for late 2010 and a regular small-scale mining and
processing operation will start in 2011, subject
to financing and environmental permits.
Gexco’s other main assets are the mining and
exploration permits on massive sulphide deposits
at Mofjellet near Mo i Rana in north Norway.
The assets include the Mofjellet mine, where some
4.3Mt of ore was mined during 1950-1987 with an
average grade of 3.6% Zn, 0.7% Pb, 0.3% Cu, 0.3g/t Au
and 10g/t Ag. About 3Mt of ore at similar grades
remain in the mine.

The mine is dry, and intact, but the equipment
from the old processing plant was dismantled and
sold.
Several exploration targets have been discovered in
the surroundings of Mo i Rana, and the environment is
regarded as favourable for both rich and large massive
sulphide deposits.
Gexco is publicly listed on the NGM equity
market in Stockholm, and has invested US$15 million
in exploration in northern Norway during the past
five years.

February 2010

01/02/2010 08:42

PROFILE

A core from the
Nordli deposit

Intex Resources: Nordli
porphyry-molybdenum deposit

S

EVERAL significant Palaeozoic
porphyry-style mineral occurrences
were discovered in the Oslo Palaeorift in
the late 1970s, including potentially the
largest molybdenum deposit in Europe –
the Nordli porphyry-molybdenum deposit near
Hurdal.
Intex Resources ASA, a public, Oslo-listed
exploration company, acquired a 100% interest in
this deposit in 2004, and started investigations of the
commercial potential of the deposit.
This included a follow-up drilling programme with a
new resource estimate and a scoping study to assess
the economic viability. Based on encouraging results,
the company was granted a formal exploitation
licence in October 2009, and is now planning the
further development of this substantial deposit.
The deposit is located about 80km north of Oslo
and was discovered by Norsk Hydro, which carried
out extensive investigations from 1979-83, including
the initial 10,200m of exploration drilling.
New drilling of 3,700m from four holes was
completed to clarify structural control and to gain
better definition of the deposit at depth.
A partial re-assaying of historic drill holes gave high
confidence in the quality of the existing data. Based on
the new and existing data, a resource evaluation for
the deposit was conducted by SRK Consulting, which
estimated an inferred resource of 210Mt with a grade

February 2010


NORDLI MOLYBDENUM
DEPOSIT, HURDAL
Inferred
Resource
210 Mt

Grade
(MoS2)
0.13%

Cut off
(MoS2)
0.07%

Resources estimate by SRK Consulting, 2007

of 0.13% MoS2 (using a 0.07% cut off), calculated
according to international CIM guidelines.
SRK also provided a first evaluation of the
deposit’s economic potential through an assessment
of possible mining and processing methods, plant and
infrastructure, as well as a basic financial analysis
presented in a conceptual mine study for the
Nordli deposit.
The study showed that a project based on
underground mining alone would be challenging
at low molybdenum prices. An alternative approach
was examined in a subsequent scoping study by
Scott Wilson Mining and Aker Kvaerner (UK),
who proposed a conceptual first phase of open-pit
operation followed by a second phase of underground
mining.
The scoping study showed that an underground
mining operation appeared more attractive when
preceded by a limited open-pit operation, and that the
project warranted progression to further stages of
development. The consultants recommended more
infill drilling and metallurgical testing of the ore.

In 2008, a 155kg representative ore sample was
shipped to SGS Lakefield in Canada for initial
metallurgical testing. A conventional porphyry-style
processing circuit was assumed for the Nordli deposit,
and the testing demonstrated high molybdenum
recoveries of 85-90% and that a final concentrate with
57% Mo, above the commercial specs of around 50%
Mo, is achievable in only four to five cleaner stages.
A deep-soil sampling programme, completed in
2008, demonstrated significant surface anomalies,
including a highly anomalous area of 500x300m with
grades from 300-5,400ppm Mo centred on top of the
known, deep-seated orebody.
In June 2009, an application for a formal
exploitation licence was submitted to the
Directorate of Mining. A licence was granted to
Molynor AS, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Intex, in
October 2009. This provided Intex with a 10-year
exclusive right to develop the Nordli deposit to
production.
Future plans include a shallow drill programme to
define the newly recognised near-surface resource
potential and supplementary deeper drilling to in-fill
‘holes’ in the current resource model.
A near-surface resource for an initial three-to-fiveyear open-pit operation would be a particularly
attractive possibility for the realisation of a
commercial mining operation at this substantial
molybdenum deposit.


15

01/02/2010 08:42

GEOLOGY

Geological Survey: Services for industry

T

Meso-proterozoic
orthogneisses on the islands
of Træna, close to the Arctic
Circle, with the wave-cut
strandflat in the foreground.

Photo: Edelpix

he Geological Survey of Norway (NGU;
www.ngu.no) is a government agency
which is part of the Ministry of Trade
and Industry (NHD). Its motto is
‘Geology for Society’, and it aims to
serve the needs for geological information in other
ministries, regional and local government, and industry.
NGU is allowed to carry out co-operative projects
and fully-funded contracts for external clients (though
not where there are clear competitors within
Norway), as well as basic governmentally-funded
mapping. Its mandate covers mainland Norway and
the near-surface geology and geophysical mapping of
the continental shelf.
NGU was founded in 1858. In the 1950s it was
amalgamated with sister organisations dealing with
geophysical prospecting and raw-materials research
(the latter established in 1917 by the famous
geochemist,Victor M. Goldschmidt).
NGU now has 225 employees, of whom about 65%
are scientific personnel, with 26 nationalities being
represented. NGU enjoys extensive co-operation
with its neighbouring countries, and has been involved
in contract and co-operative projects in other
continents, especially Africa.
Around 15% of NGU’s staff are involved in work
on hard-rock mineral resources in mainland Norway.
Information about deposits of metals, industrial
minerals and dimension stone is available on
www.prospecting.no.
NGU manages the national drill-core centre,
housed at the old Løkken mine, an hour’s drive west
of Trondheim. The centre houses 600,000m of core –
representing sections from many of Norway’s most
important ore and mineral deposits – and has good

facilities for inspection of these samples. The centre
will be extended during 2010, enabling it to provide a
better service to the industry.
NGU’s website gives an overview of the coverage
of published maps of the bedrock and surficial geology
of Norway, and of the extensive sets of geophysical
data. The geology is also available on-line as web-map
services (WMS) and can be downloaded as shape-files
or can, on request, be supplied as GIS-compitable files
at a nominal charge.
Geochemical data are also available for several
media over significant parts of the country. Highresolution helicopter and fixed-wing geophysical data
cover 14% of mainland Norway (and are displayed on
www.prospecting.no).
NGU-Lab has a modern and well-maintained range

of instruments for techniques including XRF, AAS,
ICP-AES, ICP-MS (with laser ablation), combustion
and grain-size distribution analysis, IC and XRD, as
well as facilities for palaeo-magnetic and petrophysical
measurements, mineral separation, thin-section
production, XRI (X-ray inspection of drill cores) and
SEM (scanning electron microscopy). An 40Ar/39Ar
geochronological laboratory was established in 1999.
The laboratory is accredited according to NS-EN
ISO/IEC 17025.
NGU has international-level expertise in many fields
that are relevant for the mineral industry – including
regional geophysics and geochemistry, and structural
geology relating to many types of mineral resource.
NGU is happy to assist any company with an
interest in developing prospects in Norway.

CONTACT INFORMATION
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
OF NORWAY
N-7491, Trondheim
Tel.: +47 73 90 40 00
Fax: +47 73 92 16 20
Web: www.ngu.no;
www.prospecting.no
E-mail: Rognvald.Boyd@ngu.no
DIRECTORATE FOR MINING
PO Box 3021 Lade
N-7441, Trondheim
Tel: +47 73 90 40 50
Fax: +47 73 92 14 80
Web: www.dirmin.no
E-mail: mail@dirmin.no
NORWEGIAN MINING AND
QUARRYING INDUSTRIES
PO Box 7072 Majorstuen
N-0306, Oslo
Tel: +47 23 08 88 40
Fax: +47 23 08 82 42
Web: www.norskbergindustri.no
E-mail: eg@norskbergindustri.no

16

STORE NORSKE
SPITSBERGEN
GRUBEKOMPANI
PO Box 613
N-9171, Longyearbyen
Tel: +47 79 02 52 00
Fax: +47 79 02 18 41
Web: www.snsk.no/internet
E-mail: Terje.Carlsen@snsk.no
LEONHARD NILSEN &
SØNNER AS (LNS)
N-8484, Risøyhamn
Tel: +47 76 11 57 00
Fax: +47 76 11 57 01
Web: http://www.lns.no/
E-mail: beate.bo.nilsen@lns.no
TITANIA AS
N-4380, Hauge i Dalane
Tel: +47 51 47 80 00
Fax: +47 51 47 80 10
Web: www.titania.no/no
E-mail: Knut.Petter.Netland@
kronosww.com



NUSSIR ASA
PO Box 2252
N-3103, Tønsberg
Tel: +47 33 33 25 50
Fax: +47 33 33 25 80
Web: www.nussir.no
E-mail: oystein@nussir.no

GEXCO AB
PO Box 19517
S-113 59, Stockholm, Sweden
Tel: +46 735 31 00 35
Fax: +46 8 551 149 60
Web: www.gexco.se
E-mail: jon.fangel@gexco.se

NORWEGIAN
CRYSTALLITES
PO Box 14
N-8271, Drag
Tel: +47 75 78 53 00
Fax: +47 75 78 53 01
Web: http://norcryst.no
E-mail: norcryst@norcryst.no

INTEX
RESOURCES ASA
Munkedamsveien 45A
N-0250, Oslo
Tel: +47 23 11 33 44
Fax: +47 23 11 33 45
Web: www.intexresources.com
E-mail:
jb@intexresources.com

NORDIC MINING ASA
Munkedamsv 45A
N-0250, Oslo
Tel: +47 22 94 77 90
Fax: +47 22 94 77 91
Web: www.nordicmining.com
E-mail: ivar.fossum@
nordicmining.com

INNOVATION
NORWAY
PO Box 448 Sentrum
N-0104, Oslo
Tel: +47 22 00 25 00
Web: www.innovasjonnorge.no
E-mail: post@innovasjonnorge.no

February 2010

01/02/2010 08:41

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