Sustainable mining: From silver to green energy

(Patria) - Although mining is often considered an energy-intensive industry, simply put, without the extraction of primary raw materials, there will be no transition to a zero-carbon world. To reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and electrify private, public, and commercial transport, a huge amount of so-called transition metals is needed. This region and mining companies like ours are key to this transition. It is important to mine these metals sustainably and with as low carbon emissions as possible, which is our goal - emphasizes Sanela Karić, President of the Sustainable Development Board of Adriatic Metals BH, in an interview with Oslobođenje.

Silver is the most important transition metal that will be mined in the Rupice mine in Vareš.

"Silver has become globally important over the last decade due to its unique electrical properties. Photovoltaic panels rely on silver, and the charging infrastructure for electric cars depends on silver," says Karić.

Karić also emphasizes the importance of copper, a metal without which green energy cannot be transmitted from wind or solar power plants to our homes and cars. Karić also notes that zinc is also vital, as it galvanizes steel to protect it from oxidation and rust and is used in the construction of wind farms and infrastructure to support solar farms. "The automotive industry is also increasingly moving towards 'lightweight' vehicles - the lighter the vehicle, the less energy it requires.

Whether it's gasoline or diesel cars or electric cars, the best way to make a vehicle lighter is to reduce the amount of steel used, but this increases the need for more zinc to protect thinner steel parts from rusting," explains Karić.

Karić emphasizes that the metals produced in the Adriatic Metals d.o.o. Vareš mine in BiH will have a lower carbon footprint compared to other parts of the world. "The reason is the location. We produce transition metals closer to European refineries that will process them, and they are in turn closer to European manufacturers who are driving the green revolution. Car manufacturers producing electric vehicles, the turbine industry building wind farms - they will all use the metals we produce.

The fact that we can mine these metals sustainably in Europe, thus reducing carbon emissions by implementing green energy in our energy mix, and then transport them over relatively short distances to European refineries, which then supply refined metals to European manufacturers. This means that the metals we ultimately produce will have some of the lowest carbon emissions in the world - and that is the standard by which we should be measured," says Karić.

Adriatic Metals has also stepped into the green revolution.

"Given that most of the electricity in BiH comes from coal, we see the integration of green energy production as an opportunity, not a challenge. The challenges that Adriatic Metals faces in integrating its operations and green energy production are essentially similar to those faced by all industries. However, unlike many other industries, operating in the natural resources sector provides a significant number of opportunities to incorporate the transition to green energy into our strategy.

Adriatic Metals already produces electricity through solar panels installed on roofs, and more importantly, we are developing plans in cooperation with a leading European investor in solar energy and green energy production to power our ore processing plant," concludes Karić.