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Published on 19.12.2024 at 10.00

Terrafame has received two permit decisions from the Vaasa Administrative Court

Terrafame has received two final decisions from the Vaasa Administrative Court. One of the decisions concerns the environmental and water permit covering all of Terrafame’s operations, i.e. the main permit, and the other concerns the KL1 waste rock area. The Regional State Administrative Agency for Northern Finland issued its decision on the main permit in 2022 and on the KL1 waste rock area in 2023. In January 2024, the Vaasa Administrative Court issued interim decisions related to the permits. The interim decisions also included restrictions to the extraction volumes for ore and waste rock.

In its now issued decisions, the Vaasa Administrative Court confirmed the increase in the ore extraction volume to 18 million tonnes per year but restricted the waste rock extraction volume to 30 million tonnes per year, approved earlier by the Regional State Administrative Agency for Northern Finland. The decisions of the Vaasa Administrative Court partly restrict the construction and use of the new secondary leaching area SEK5-8 and the new waste rock area KL1.

“Terrafame is satisfied with the ore extraction volume increasing to 18 million tonnes per year, as this is highly important for the company. The permit decision package is extensive, and Terrafame will analyse it in more detail, assessing the impacts of the decisions on the company’s operations,” says Veli-Matti Hilla, Chief Sustainability Officer of Terrafame Ltd.

Background

The permit decisions issued by the Northern Finland Regional State Administrative Agency in 2022 and 2023 included a so-called start permit – a permission to start the operations specified in the permit decision despite any appeals. These permit decisions were appealed. In January 2024, the Vaasa Administrative Court issued interim decisions concerning the permit to start the operations despite appeals.

The permission granted by the Northern Finland Regional State Administrative Agency to increase the extraction of ore and waste rock annually was excluded from the interim decisions issued by the Vaasa Administrative Court. In its permit decision, the Northern Finland Regional State Administrative Agency approved an increase in the ore extraction volume from 15 million tonnes per year to 18 million tonnes per year, and an increase in the waste rock extraction volume from 30 million tonnes per year to 45 million tonnes per year. In addition, the interim decisions issued by the Vaasa Administrative Court included restrictions concerning the construction and use of the new secondary leaching area (SEK5-8) and the new waste rock area (KL1). The news about the interim decisions was published on Terrafame’s website on 24 January 2024 (in Finnish).

Secondary leaching areas are the leaching heaps that the company uses during the second stage of bioleaching in its production process, as well as the final disposal site for the leached ore. Waste rock is the material that needs to be separated from the ore before the ore is used in production.

For further information, please contact:

Veli-Matti Hilla, Chief Sustainability Officer, Terrafame Ltd, tel. +358 20 7130 800 (switchboard), veli-matti.hilla(at)terrafame.fi

Terrafame enhances low-carbon mobility by delivering responsibly produced battery chemicals to the global battery industry. One of the world’s largest production lines for chemicals used in electric vehicle batteries is located on Terrafame’s industrial site. The plant is capable of producing nickel sulphate for around 1 million EVs per year. The carbon footprint of the nickel sulphate produced by Terrafame is among the smallest in the industry.

Terrafame’s integrated, unique and energy-efficient production process from the mine to battery chemicals is located on a single industrial site. It provides customers with a transparent, traceable and truly European battery chemical supply chain.

Terrafame Ltd was founded in 2015. Its net sales in 2023 were EUR 560.9 million. Around 1,900 people work on its industrial site, slightly over half of whom are employees of partner companies.

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