NORDIC MINING
CONTENTS
CEO’s REPORT
OPERATIONS
BOD’s REPORT
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
9
ANNUAL REPORT 2023
To learn and control how we impact the
environment, a comprehensive environmental
monitoring program has been developed using
state of the art technology. Monitoring is
ongoing to supervise potential effects from
construction activities related to airborne dust,
vibrations and noise, and risk for emissions to
fjord surface water and fresh-water bodies. In line
with the provisions of the environmental permit,
baseline monitoring in the fjord prior operation
has been done throughout 2023, soft and
hardbottom, beach zone, water quality and
sedimentation rate monitoring has been done
for Engebø and has secured valuable information
on the fjord status prior to production start-up at
Engebø.
waste. To address this, Engebø has an
Due to its high purity it can be used directly in
chlorination plants to make titanium pigment or
as feed for titanium metal production. Other
sources of raw materials such as ilmenite, must
go through additional processing steps and
upgrading. This is done through carbon
intensive leaching or smelting processes that
increases the climate footprint and produces
substantial amounts of waste.
electrified mining operation. The Engebø Project
has a target of net zero GHG emissions. To
achieve this goal, Nordic Mining has initiated the
development of a Climate Strategy Plan
together with SRK.
approved Waste Management Plan. The plan
builds on the EU’s Best Available Techniques for
extractive waste management6. The Waste
Management Plan aims to ensure that proper
measures and procedures are in place to reduce
effects on the environment, and any resultant risks
to human health related to our waste rock and
seabed tailings facility. The plan also addresses
measures to reduce and utilize waste streams.
Minviro, UK has carried out an independent Life
Cycle Assessment («LCA») of the rutile product
to be produced at Engebø. The LCA is a
cradle-to-gate assessment and it covers all
stages of the production of natural rutile
concentrate from Engebø. The study calculates
the Global Warming Potential («GWP») and
covers scope 1, 2 and 37 calculations of GHG
emissions. The GWP impact of the Engebø
Rutile was determined to be 0,17 kg CO2 eq. The
main drivers of the GWP are the consumption of
diesel in the mining operation and the explosive
consumption related to the ore extraction.
Engebø Garnet is an industrial mineral suitable
for water jet cutting applications. Water jet
cutting is an efficient high precision cutting
process used for cutting a wide range of
materials including plastics, glass to steel.
The cutting technology provides a safe and
environmentally friendly alternative as it can be
done without any chemicals or heat, and
produces no vapor, smoke, or airborne dust.
Since Garnet particles are trapped in water in
the cutting process, they can be filtered out to
be recycled or safely disposed after use. Garnet
is a silica free, non-toxic product and can be
safely handled by operators.
We have a long-term planning perspective for
the Engebø mining operation. A conceptual
closure and reclamation plan was completed
early in 2022 and outline a management system
to ensure that we can successfully rehabilitate
the mine site at closure. In line with our
biodiversity goal, we aim for a high degree of
restoration to return the area to nature and
enable meaningful use for the local population’s
post-closure.
The Company will ensure that the communities
and other stakeholders that are potentially
affected by our operations are well informed and
are given opportunities to engage with us. We
will work proactively to understand people’s
needs and concerns and seek solutions to
mitigate these throughout the construction
phase and into operation. In 2023 the resource
group had two meetings and information
meetings in Kvammen and Vevring was held
quarterly. During the second information
meeting noise was a concern from stakeholders
in both Kvammen and Vevring. Engebø did a
noise investigation and reported back the
results from the investigation to the community.
The investigation showed that noise levels
during construction was well within permit limits.
The few occasions with noise close to or over
permit limit was confirmed to not be related to
activity at the construction site.
Minviro conducted a benchmarking study to
compare rutile from Engebø with a wide range of
titanium-bearing feedstocks, including other
natural rutile products, synthetic rutile, and
titanium slag. The analysis showed that the
GWP impact of the Engebø Rutile was superior
and substantially lower than the alternative
sources. Result from the GWP benchmarking is
summarized in the graph on the next page.
Supplying sustainable products
Engebø Rutile will be a source of raw material
for several end use products that can positively
impact human life. Titanium is contributing to
human health by its use as long-lasting implants
in the human body. It is also used in creating
more healthy living environments, when used in
concrete to capture air pollution. Titanium
metal plays a role in lowering carbon footprint.
The metal is used in constructing light weight
airplanes to lower their fuel consumption and
carbon emissions. It is also a critical ingredient
for equipment to withstand high temperatures
and corrosion in geothermal energy plants.
Contribution to fight climate change
The Engebø mining operations has a limited
Green House Gas («GHG») emission footprint
due to available hydroelectric power in the area
and a tight infrastructure with minimal transpor-
tation. The annual GHG emissions are
calculated to be 3085 tCO2eq. per annum and
6. Best Available Techniques (BAT) Reference Document
for the Management of Waste from Extractive Industries
in accordance with Directive 2006/21/EC.
an energy consumption of 0,08 TWh. SRK
Study from 2020 showed how the Project will
achieve an 85% reduction in GHG emissions by
replacement of gas dryers with electrical dryers.
The main source of GHG for the Project is diesel
consumption from the mining fleet. Nordic Mining
has investigated options for electrification of the
fleet and will when feasible transition to a fully
7. Scope 1: Direct GHG emissions (e.g. furnace off-gas,
combustion of fuels) Scope 2: Indirect GHG emissions
from consumption of purchased electricity, heat, or
steam (e.g. emissions embodied in grid power) Scope 3:
Other indirect emissions such as the extraction and
production of purchased materials and fuels, transport-
related activities in vehicles not owned or controlled by
the reporting entity, and outsourced activities.
In general, natural rutile is an environmentally
superior raw material for the titanium raw
material industry compared to other sources.
One of the greatest challenges in the mining
industry is to sustainably manage extractive
