The Regional State Administrative Agency for Northern Finland issues its decision on Terrafame s master permit

Today, the Regional State Administrative Agency for Northern Finland issued its decision on the environmental and water permit covering all of Terrafame’s operations, i.e. the master permit. The master permit determines the scope of all operations including new short-term plans, sets emission limits, and defines an environmental liability for discontinued operations.

Terrafame already submitted its environmental and water permit application covering all of its operations to the Regional State Administrative Agency for Northern Finland in 2017. The processing time was unusually long, and operations have also undergone changes during the permit process. The most significant change concerns the start-up of battery chemical production, regarding which the Regional State Administrative Agency issued a separate permit decision in 2021.

The new permit enables the implementation of projects under preparation, including the construction of the new secondary leaching area and the remediation of the Salmijärvi lake connected to it.

In the new permit, the collateral requirement for eventual closure increased significantly compared to the old permit. The increase in the collateral requirement was already indicated in the previous permit decision on the expansion of the primary leaching area. The company also addressed the expected increase on its 2021 balance sheet by increasing its environmental provision.

The permit decision does not include the Kolmisoppi project for the utilisation of the second deposit located in the mining concession or the expansion of the mining concession, for which Terrafame submitted a separate application to the Regional State Administrative Agency for Northern Finland on 17 June 2022.

“We are satisfied that we have finally received the long-awaited decision on the master permit. The new permit is significantly more up to date than the previous master permit, and it also enables our ongoing development projects to proceed as planned,” the Chief Sustainability Officer of Terrafame Ltd Veli-Matti Hilla says.

“On the basis of the first review, one of the biggest changes to the new permit is the increase in collateral requiremet from EUR 138 million to EUR 324 million. The new collateral requirement is exceptionally large in international comparison and the annual cost of financing such a large collateral is considerable, which raises questions about the functioning of the existing  system. The permit decision is very broad, and we will analyse it closely and also assess any needs for changes,” says Hilla.

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 reduces the carbon footprint of transport by delivering responsibly produced battery chemicals to the global battery industry. One of the world’s largest production lines for chemicals used in electric car batteries is located on Terrafame’s industrial site. The plant is capable of producing nickel sulphate for around 1 million electric cars 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 2021 were EUR 378 million. Around 1,500 people work on its industrial site, half of whom are employees of partner companies.