Grenland and Telemark secure the raw materials Europe needs

Grenland and Telemark are now positioning themselves as Europe’s most important region for critical raw materials.
group, six persons, posing, stage in background Key stakeholders aim to accelerate the extraction of the Fens Field’s vast deposits of rare earth elements and to produce the products that Norway and Europe need. From left: Carl Diderik Cappelen, Ulefos AS; Sverre Gotaas, Herøya Industripark AS; Bård Bergfald, Bergfald Miljørådgivere; Toril Roberg, REEtec; Alf Reistad, REN; and Alf Bjørseth, founder of REEtec/Thor Medical. Photo: T.Brekke.

Key stakeholders are set to accelerate the extraction of the vast deposits of rare earth elements in the Fens Field and to produce the materials that Norway and Europe require.

A strategic window of opportunity

Today, China controls nearly all supplies of rare earth elements to the West, leaving the geopolitical situation vulnerable. Alf Reistad, CEO of Rare Earths Norway, is impatient.

 

man on stage, suit, arms out, mic
Alf Reistad, CEO of Rare Earths Norway.

“We have an enormous deposit that can secure critical raw materials for Europe. But the pace is too slow. If we are to take a market position, the Government must step in now. This is not a ‘gold mine’ that will be profitable on its own – it requires strategic commitment and regulatory conditions on a par with what the US and China offer their industries,” Reistad said.

‘Telemark track’: From mine to finished product

The ambition is not merely to extract raw materials, but to build a complete and compact value chain from Ulefoss to Herøya. This includes:

  • Extraction: Mining in Nome.

  • Separation: REEtec has developed a groundbreaking technology that separates the rare earth elements in minutes, compared with months using traditional methods.

  • Further Processing: Production of the world’s strongest magnets and high-tech components.

  • Medicine: Thor Medical is building a full-scale facility at Herøya to utilise thorium from the field for pioneering cancer treatment.

A national centre of expertise

To ensure that Norway makes the right choices for nature, society and the economy, Herøya Industripark AS, Frier Vest, the county council and the University of South Eastern Norway have established Fenssenteret AS.

 

portrait of man
Sverre Gotaas, CEO of Herøya Industripark AS. Photo: T.Brekke

“Our goal is for the whole of Norway to benefit from this expertise. The region already possesses the chemical know-how needed. If we manage to go from extraction to finished products here in Telemark, we will create an industrial ecosystem whose significance we can scarcely grasp today,” said Sverre Gotaas, Director of Herøya Industripark AS.

Europe looks to Norway

Bjørn Arne Skogstad from SIVA confirms that Norway is well advanced when it comes to technical infrastructure. The Katapult programme is now being used as an example by the European Commission of how to strengthen industrial competitiveness.

 

participants of meeting, sitting at tables, clapping
Packed house: Huge interest in rare earth elements and the Fen Field.

Can we afford not to do this?

The industry now asks Government a simple question: If supplies from the East cease, millions of European jobs and our shared defence capabilities will also be at risk.

12. February 2026

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