Strategic Resources (TSX-V:SR) is set to supply vanadium-rich magnetite (VTM) concentrate to a €17 million ($28.19 million) research project developing fossil-free steel production in Finland.
The University of Oulu launched the Future Sustainable Electric Steel Mill project (FutSteel) in collaboration with industrial partners, including Strategic Resources.
The four-year research program runs from 2026 through 2029 and aims to develop the entire steelmaking chain by combining electric arc technology with modernised hot rolling processes.
FutSteel selected Strategic Resources’ vanadium-rich magnetite concentrate from the company’s Mustavaara project in northern Finland for inclusion in an advanced hydrogen-based ironmaking testing program.
The project will support the industrial transformation at the SSAB Raahe steel mill as part of Finland’s transition to low-carbon steel production.
Strategic Resources CEO Sean Cleary says the selection validates the project’s strategic value.
“Having Strategic Resources’ VTM concentrate selected by FutSteel for their fossil-free steelmaking research is validation of what we have always known: Finland hosts a well-developed, high-grade VTM asset (Mustavaara) with potential strategic importance to the future of clean steel production,” Cleary says.
“As the global steel industry transitions away from coking coal toward hydrogen-based processes, the demand for high-quality local iron ore feedstock will only intensify.
“Our company is well-positioned to be part of that supply chain.”
Strategic Resources is a critical minerals developer focused on vanadium, iron, and titanium. It operates the previously producing Mustavaara mine in Finland and the construction-ready BlackRock project in Québec.
Write to Paula Fabe at Mining.com.au
Images: Unsplash
