TELF AG explores the recently signed Memorandum of understanding between the United States and Norway
New strategic agreements
In recent days, Norway and the United States signed a memorandum of understanding to deepen their cooperation in strategic minerals. The two countries, both US-led Minerals Security Partnership members, expressed their joint willingness to strengthen global raw material supply chains and improve accessibility to these resources. Last April, the two nations agreed on a special collaboration to protect supply chains related to minerals and clean energy. This suggests that a more concrete step in bilateral cooperation could be taken soon. Before signing the Memorandum, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide recalled the excellent relations between the two countries, which appear entirely in agreement in giving strategic minerals a key role in the economic development of nations.
Being able to count on stable supply chains for the two countries means, above all, having a greater chance of achieving global goals related to clean energy while also contributing to increasing national security. In addition to mutual collaboration within the Mineral Security Partnership, which is currently engaged in developing 32 minerals-related projects around the world, the partnership between the two countries already appeared very solid even before the signing of the Memorandum. A part of the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global, the largest sovereign fund in the world, is invested in the United States, particularly in infrastructures related to renewable energy, which are also built thanks to several strategic minerals.
Norway’s Geological Resources
Norway’s geological wealth is well-known and well-documented. A few months ago, one of the largest European deposits of rare earths was discovered in Norway, a group of elements of great importance for the electronics sector and for producing permanent magnets. Oslo is also the leading graphite producer in Europe and the leading cobalt exporter to the United States (and the third largest exporter of nickel).
Over the years, Norway has attracted the international community’s attention for its large availability of natural resources, from gas to minerals, from metamorphic rocks to rare earths. Natural gas is found mainly in the North Sea and contributes notably to Norwegian energy exports. Large quantities of iron have also been found in Norway, continuously fueling the national steel industry in recent decades. The country also has relevant reserves of copper and zinc, which are also used in the technological sectors. Thanks to the large availability of hydroelectric energy, Norway is also one of the world’s largest aluminum producers.
Among Norway’s most abundant resources are certainly the aforementioned nickel and cobalt. Nickel is sourced in various areas of the nation and is used mainly in the metallurgical sector to produce stainless steel. Cobalt, also present in important quantities in Norway, is a primary material for producing batteries for electric vehicles and technologies related to the energy transition. Oslo also has large quantities of graphite, directly involved in the production processes of batteries and electronic components.
