Also Read: A Quebec rail firm is expanding after a $150 million contract to rebuild VIA Rail’s sleeper cars<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nTogether, the three mines are becoming a test of whether Europe can strengthen its industrial supply chains<\/a> without treating environmental costs as an afterthought.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhy Granada matters now<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Why does this matter beyond southern Spain? The EU formally lists both strontium and fluorspar among its 34 critical raw materials<\/a> because of their economic importance and supply risk, although neither appears on the smaller 17-material strategic list. The regulation says critical raw materials underpin renewable energy, digital industry, aerospace and defense supply chains.<\/p>\n\n\n\nStrontium compounds are used across electronics, ceramics, specialty glass and other manufacturing, while fluorspar is an important input for chemical and metallurgical industries. Most shoppers never see these minerals, but they sit several steps behind products found in kitchens, cars, power systems and factories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
That quiet role is exactly why a supply disruption can spread quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Industrial](\"https:\/\/okdiario.com\/techy\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/granada-mines-strategic-minerals-southern-spain-1.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Strategic mineral extraction at active mining sites across Granada as Europe works to strengthen industrial supply chains.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nMontevive turns waste into ore<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Montevive\u2019s earlier boom was closely tied to cathode-ray television tubes. When flat-panel technologies took over, demand fell sharply, but newer industrial and medical applications brought the mineral deposit back into focus. The Terravision project<\/a> describes Montevive as the largest celestine deposit in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe new plan starts with the mine\u2019s own waste heaps. \u201cThe pilot plant has delivered very good results, and we are obtaining celestite with a grade of 92%,\u201d laboratory chief Noem\u00ed Ariza said. The company plans to build an industrial plant, begin production without blasting and invest more than roughly $2.28 million using recent exchange rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Recovering ore from old spoil<\/a> can reduce the need to open fresh ground and may shrink the volume of legacy mining waste, but it is not impact-free. Water use, electricity demand, dust, truck traffic and the handling of new residues will still determine whether the project delivers a genuine environmental improvement.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKandelium bets on circular mining<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Esc\u00fazar open-pit operation<\/a>, described in the supplied reporting as the world\u2019s second-largest celestite mine, began production around 1990 and has been controlled by German strontium producer Kandelium since 2021. <\/p>\n\n\n\nMore than 110,000 tons of high-grade strontium sulfate are shipped each year through the Port of Motril to Germany, where the material is converted into strontium carbonate for industrial customers. The mine reportedly has enough reserves for about 30 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kandelium describes Esc\u00fazar as the world\u2019s largest raw-material refining plant for celestite and says extraction is carried out mechanically. Carlos Gonz\u00e1lez, director of the mining operation, said the site had achieved \u201c100% use of the mineral resource,\u201d with less mining waste and greater reuse or recovery of the remaining material. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nAlso Read: Meet the Airbus Beluga XL: the world’s strangest-looking cargo plane that is rewriting Airbus’s future<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThat is a company claim, but it points to the metric that matters most here: how much useful product is obtained from every ton moved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For consumers, this supply chain is almost invisible. A mineral leaves a hillside in Andalusia, travels by sea to Germany and eventually becomes an ingredient used by manufacturers. Yet every extra processing and transportation step also carries an energy and emissions cost that should be measured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00d3rgiva needs patient capital<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\u00d3rgiva tells a different story. The mine closed in 1989 after employing as many as 300 workers, then reopened in 2010 under the locally owned Minera de \u00d3rgiva. Today, roughly 92 miles of underground galleries<\/a> produce about 19,800 tons of fluorspar each year for industrial customers around the Mediterranean.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSpain\u2019s Geological and Mining Institute says the operations in Andalusia and Asturias help increase the EU\u2019s internal supply of fluorspar. \u00d3rgiva could produce more, but production director Celso Amor says the company needs outside funding for exploration and technology. \u201cThere is interest and there are studies, but reaching an agreement takes time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/okdiario.com\/techy\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/granada-spain-critical-minerals-mines-celestite.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Three critical mineral mines in Granada, including Esc\u00fazar and Montevive, are boosting Europe’s supply chain security through advanced resource recovery and industrial processing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nFor a local operator, expansion requires expensive drilling, processing equipment and environmental controls before additional revenue arrives. The European Commission itself says developing critical-mineral projects will require better access to financing. Going forward, Europe\u2019s supply-security plan may depend as much on patient capital as it does on geology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The green test<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Montevive\u2019s waste-recovery plan closely matches the EU\u2019s call to recover critical materials from extractive waste facilities. Kandelium\u2019s resource-efficiency claims fit the same circular approach. The idea is simple enough: mine less new rock for every unit of usable material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nAlso Read: Britain has approved a 700-acre solar farm in Cumbria that will take up to two years to build<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThe label \u201csustainable mining\u201d should be earned with transparent results, though, not just branding. Companies and regulators should publish comparable figures covering energy, water, emissions, land restoration, worker safety and effects on nearby communities, then show whether those numbers improve as production rises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the end of the day, Granada\u2019s new mining boom will be judged by what it supplies and by what it leaves behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The official policy statement was published on European Commission<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Europe\u2019s drive to secure critical raw materials is putting three mines in Granada, southern Spain, back on the industrial map. … <\/p>\n
Why Granada matters now<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Why does this matter beyond southern Spain? The EU formally lists both strontium and fluorspar among its 34 critical raw materials<\/a> because of their economic importance and supply risk, although neither appears on the smaller 17-material strategic list. The regulation says critical raw materials underpin renewable energy, digital industry, aerospace and defense supply chains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Strontium compounds are used across electronics, ceramics, specialty glass and other manufacturing, while fluorspar is an important input for chemical and metallurgical industries. Most shoppers never see these minerals, but they sit several steps behind products found in kitchens, cars, power systems and factories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n That quiet role is exactly why a supply disruption can spread quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Montevive\u2019s earlier boom was closely tied to cathode-ray television tubes. When flat-panel technologies took over, demand fell sharply, but newer industrial and medical applications brought the mineral deposit back into focus. The Terravision project<\/a> describes Montevive as the largest celestine deposit in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The new plan starts with the mine\u2019s own waste heaps. \u201cThe pilot plant has delivered very good results, and we are obtaining celestite with a grade of 92%,\u201d laboratory chief Noem\u00ed Ariza said. The company plans to build an industrial plant, begin production without blasting and invest more than roughly $2.28 million using recent exchange rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Recovering ore from old spoil<\/a> can reduce the need to open fresh ground and may shrink the volume of legacy mining waste, but it is not impact-free. Water use, electricity demand, dust, truck traffic and the handling of new residues will still determine whether the project delivers a genuine environmental improvement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Esc\u00fazar open-pit operation<\/a>, described in the supplied reporting as the world\u2019s second-largest celestite mine, began production around 1990 and has been controlled by German strontium producer Kandelium since 2021. <\/p>\n\n\n\n More than 110,000 tons of high-grade strontium sulfate are shipped each year through the Port of Motril to Germany, where the material is converted into strontium carbonate for industrial customers. The mine reportedly has enough reserves for about 30 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kandelium describes Esc\u00fazar as the world\u2019s largest raw-material refining plant for celestite and says extraction is carried out mechanically. Carlos Gonz\u00e1lez, director of the mining operation, said the site had achieved \u201c100% use of the mineral resource,\u201d with less mining waste and greater reuse or recovery of the remaining material. <\/p>\n\n\n\n That is a company claim, but it points to the metric that matters most here: how much useful product is obtained from every ton moved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For consumers, this supply chain is almost invisible. A mineral leaves a hillside in Andalusia, travels by sea to Germany and eventually becomes an ingredient used by manufacturers. Yet every extra processing and transportation step also carries an energy and emissions cost that should be measured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00d3rgiva tells a different story. The mine closed in 1989 after employing as many as 300 workers, then reopened in 2010 under the locally owned Minera de \u00d3rgiva. Today, roughly 92 miles of underground galleries<\/a> produce about 19,800 tons of fluorspar each year for industrial customers around the Mediterranean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Spain\u2019s Geological and Mining Institute says the operations in Andalusia and Asturias help increase the EU\u2019s internal supply of fluorspar. \u00d3rgiva could produce more, but production director Celso Amor says the company needs outside funding for exploration and technology. \u201cThere is interest and there are studies, but reaching an agreement takes time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a local operator, expansion requires expensive drilling, processing equipment and environmental controls before additional revenue arrives. The European Commission itself says developing critical-mineral projects will require better access to financing. Going forward, Europe\u2019s supply-security plan may depend as much on patient capital as it does on geology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Montevive\u2019s waste-recovery plan closely matches the EU\u2019s call to recover critical materials from extractive waste facilities. Kandelium\u2019s resource-efficiency claims fit the same circular approach. The idea is simple enough: mine less new rock for every unit of usable material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The label \u201csustainable mining\u201d should be earned with transparent results, though, not just branding. Companies and regulators should publish comparable figures covering energy, water, emissions, land restoration, worker safety and effects on nearby communities, then show whether those numbers improve as production rises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the day, Granada\u2019s new mining boom will be judged by what it supplies and by what it leaves behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The official policy statement was published on European Commission<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Europe\u2019s drive to secure critical raw materials is putting three mines in Granada, southern Spain, back on the industrial map. … <\/p>\nMontevive turns waste into ore<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Kandelium bets on circular mining<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: Meet the Airbus Beluga XL: the world’s strangest-looking cargo plane that is rewriting Airbus’s future<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\u00d3rgiva needs patient capital<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The green test<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: Britain has approved a 700-acre solar farm in Cumbria that will take up to two years to build<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n