Russian billionaire Potanin eyes rare earth metals exploration
Russian billionaire Vladimir Potanin, CEO and shareholder of metals giant Nornickel, said on Tuesday he is considering projects in rare earths, noting that reserves in Russia and Russian-controlled Eastern Ukraine have been poorly studied.
Rare earths and other critical metals, essential for high-tech industries, have gained global attention in recent months due to US President Donald Trump’s efforts to counter China’s dominance in the sector.
“Many deposits within our territory and the new Russian territories are inadequately explored. Many geological studies and their results were lost after the Soviet Union,” Potanin told reporters.
“Therefore, all of this needs to be restored now. We are contemplating and working on it,” he added. It was not immediately clear from Potanin’s remarks whether Nornickel would be involved in such projects.
President Vladimir Putin has offered the US the opportunity, under a future economic deal, to jointly explore Russia’s rare earth metal deposits, which he claims are more extensive than those of Ukraine.
Potanin emphasized that due to the small size of many deposits and challenging exploration conditions, Russian firms will need partners who can provide the necessary technology.
“Since these are complex projects, technological support from various partners would be beneficial for us,” Potanin said.
Nornickel, a major global producer of refined nickel and palladium, currently does not hold any licenses for rare earth metals exploration.
(By Olesya Astakhova and Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Kim Coghill)
Russian court transfers zinc producer Dalpolimetall to state ownership
A Russian court on Tuesday said it had transferred ownership of major zinc and lead producer Dalpolimetall to the Russian state, after considering a claim brought by the Russian Prosecutor’s Office.
Russia is quickening the pace of domestic asset seizures after courts ruled early this year that a leading grain trader, Moscow’s sprawling Domodedovo airport and strategic warehouse assets be handed over to the state.
Russia’s finance ministry on Tuesday said it intends to revive plans for major privatizations in 2025 and also expects to bring in more than $1.2 billion by selling assets seized through the courts.
Dalpolimetall, which produces lead and zinc ores at two mines in Russia’s Far East and employs more than 1,500 people, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Foreign companies have grappled with the risk of state seizure ever since Russia sent its army into Ukraine in February 2022, but Moscow, under the auspices of strategic stability and domestic security, has increasingly brought domestic assets too into the crosshairs.
(By Anastasia Lyrchikova and Alexander Marrow; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
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