The green transition and the electrification of our society start in the mine. It is an unsustainable contradiction to want electric vehicles and wind turbines without also taking responsibility for the raw materials. With this facility, we are taking a decisive step toward reducing Europe's import dependency and ensuring access to critical minerals and metals for the future.

The world has now turned its attention to metals and minerals once again. We are currently almost entirely dependent on imports for phosphorus and rare earth elements, while demand is rising sharply. By extracting these critical minerals, LKAB can make better use of the material we already mine and strengthen our future competitiveness, while also improving security of supply and preparedness in Europe. This facility is a crucial building block to make that possible.

We are honoured to receive this recognition by the GAEA Awards and the World Economic Forum. It is an important acknowledgement of the groundbreaking collaboration and journey we have undertaken together with SSAB and Vattenfall. The results show that the HYBRIT process works and that we are well positioned for the next step of industrializing the technology and establishing a competitive value chain for the fossil-free iron- and steelmaking of the future.

The geopolitical situation and Sweden’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2045 make the need for critical minerals urgent. The EU is today entirely dependent on imports of phosphorus and rare earth elements, which it classifies as critical raw materials. This application is crucial for enabling a future investment decision for full-scale production in Luleå.

LKAB's environmental permit application is another step towards the development of the full-scale industrial park in Luleå. It is encouraging to see them move forward according to their plan with this establishment, which is important for the continued development of both the municipality and the region as a hub for the green transition. The production of these critical minerals for wind turbines, electric vehicles, and food security is essential for our entire society and provides an opportunity to create new jobs for the future.

The outlook for continued increases to the life of LKAB’s mines has been greatly enhanced by these additions to the mineral assets of the company

The investment and ownership in REEtec is thereby a natural extension of our value chain and fits well with our strategy.

The climate can't wait and demand for the raw material for producing fossil-free steel is already upon us – before we have even reached the market.

There is tremendous global interest in what is happening in our part of the world right now. We are breaking new ground on the journey towards fossil-free iron and steelmaking, which is the greatest thing we can do together for the climate. Expo is a unique opportunity to place Sweden and LKAB on the map in relation to the sustainability challenges the world is facing and we hope that others will follow our example.

To improve safety, reduce carbon dioxide emissions and to increase productivity in our mines is vital for LKAB to be able to continue to deliver climate-efficient iron ore products.

In this case, the European Commission has pursued a policy of willingly subsidizing the steel industry's continued use of the least climate-effective technologies.

Such a large increase in mineral resources is a prerequisite both for continuing to operate as a mining company and for our major transition to carbon-dioxide-free products.

The premium for the spot price has been subject to downward pressure because of the current global uncertainty; at the same time, industries of the future are unquestionably driving towards more sustainable processes. LKAB continues to focus on developing and delivering highly upgraded iron ore products with clear added value and climate benefits in steelmaking processes.

In the coming years LKAB must have a solution in place to be able to mine iron ore at depths approaching or exceeding 2,000 metres in a cost-effective way by employing technology that is safe, autonomous, electrified, digitalized and carbon-dioxide-free. To enable this, collaboration with other leading industrial companies will be decisive. Sandvik's longstanding experience of producing underground vehicle systems will complement the ongoing work in an important way.

This investment will amount to several billion Swedish kronor and create hundreds of jobs. The industrial park will be a centre for chemical engineering where innovative technology is used to recover valuable resources. Here, we will set a global standard for clean products, energy efficiency and emissions,

Together we can rebuild Sweden as the world’s first fossil-free welfare nation

Achieving positive results from different heating technologies represents an important milestone on the road to delivering the world’s very first fossil-free iron ore pellets

Ultimately, this will make LKAB's iron ore pellets completely carbon-dioxide-free.

Analyses of ongoing prospecting results indicate that the ore volumes in Kiruna at depth do not correspond to previous assumptions. LKAB is therefore now investing on a broad front to meet this challenge.

Now our goal is to have a full-scale plant for production of ammonium phosphate and rare earth metals within five years.

Jan Moström, LKAB’s President and CEO

There is only one way to go if we are to secure long-term sustainable mining operations in Malmfälten.We have to enhance productivity – in other words, produce more with fewer employees – and we have to cut costs by working smarter.

LKAB is facing an intensely changing market which requires a somewhat different leadership competence, with increased focus on cost efficiency and productivity. LKAB's board has decided to appoint a new CEO with experience in rationalization and development of the mining industry. Jan Moström will contribute great knowledge especially in production.