The Sæteråsen Project

~8 Mt @ 0.245% Nb, 1.2% Zr and 0.55% TREO

59.295601, 10.004455

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Overview

The Sæteråsen deposits are located in Larvik municipality, and forms a part of the Permian Oslo Rift magmatic province. The mineralization is hosted in rift-related trachyte which contains elevated amounts of niobium, zircon and both light and heavy rare earth elements, including several magnet-critical elements important for Europe's strategic raw material supply chains.

Mineral Holding has entered into a 50-50 joint venture with local landowners, Fritzøe Energi AS, to collaborate on the evaluation of the economic potential of the deposits. These evaluations will take place between 2026-2028 and if subject to positive results will yield an extraction license for further project development.

Highlights

The two lenses are estimated to contain approximately 8 million tonnes of ore, based on four drill holes and detailed surface geological mapping.
The mineralization is rather homogeneous and contains notable concentrations of critical and high-value elements, including 0.245% Nb, 1.2% Zr, 0.03% Hf, 0.013% Ta, 0.14% Dy, 0.07% Nd, 0.025% Pr, 0.07% Y, 0.18% Ce, and 0.049% Th.
The deposit exhibits a distinct geophysical response associated with its high thorium content, offering a valuable geophysical fingerprint that may assist in identifying similar Nb–Zr-REE mineralizations in the surrounding region.
Offtake-agreements and partnerships offer to handle radioactive byproducts to secure own supply of thorium for medical and energy purposes.
Close proximity to facilities planned to separate REE for the Fen Complex, designed for mutually beneficial collaborations.

Geological Setting

The Sæteråsen deposits are interpreted to be two aphyric trachyte lava flows interbedded within a sequence of porphyritic trachyte and rhomb-porphyry lavas in the Vestfold lava series of the Oslo Rift. This Permian rift system in southeastern Norway was a center of intense alkaline magmatism, where crustal extension produced a diverse suite of volcanic and subvolcanic rocks. The Sæteråsen lavas are notably fine-grained and peralkaline, enriched in rare earth elements and niobium, zirconium, and hafnium. These geochemical characteristics reflect late-stage magmatic differentiation and make Sæteråsen a representative example of the rift-related critical metal systems that characterize the Oslo province.

Location and infrastructure

Sæteråsen is located in a forested area between Hvarnes and Andebu in Larvik municipality of Vestfold county, eastern Norway. The area has a low area-conflict and are connection to roads designed for timber transportation. The broader region offers good infrastructure with stable hydroelectric power along with several suitable sites for tailing storage. The larger city of Larvik is located 20 km south of the deposit and offers industrial services, railways and deep-water ports.

The geological system Sæteråsen is in could host similar mineralization suggested by the geophysical data, which all have been claimed by the joint venture for further exploration.

Mineralogy and Metallurgy

The projects has an overall complex mineralogy due to the different amounts of minerals being present. The main minerals of economical interests are the pyrochlore for its niobium content and the 2.5-3.2% zircon for zirconium and hafnium extraction. The primary REE-bearing minerals are currently identified to be Chevkinite, Euxenite and Fergusonite. Based on the four drill holes previously conducted, the average content of rare earth oxides are in total 0.55% TREO, including the following 0.18% Ce, 0.11% La, 0.075% Y, 0.069% Nd.

Previous testwork on the deposits proved the rock was too fine-grained for mechanical separation and therefore chemical extraction was explored for niobium. The result of this experiment was a 78% niobium recovery, equaling a 0.19% niobium yield per ton by using either hydrochloric or sulfuric acid. A further experiment for additional extraction of zirconium and rare earth elements were historically drafted, but not conducted.

Conducted and future work

Mineral Holding AS and Fritzøe Energi AS has of early 2026 incooperated a 50-50 joint venture in preparation for an exploration program taking place between 2026-2028. Fritzøe Energi AS is subsidiary of the Treschow-Fritzøe Group, who are part landowners and conducts timber production in the region.

Our joint venture will engage the third-party SRK Consulting Limited to prepare an early RPEEE-document for evaluating the deposits preliminary economical potential. Based on this conclusion a broader metallurgical testwork and drill campaign will be conducted before applying for an extraction permit.