(Bloomberg) -- A Finnish mining company has found two rare earth minerals that could play a vital role in helping to improve Europe’s self-sufficiency in the crucial battery metals.

Previously known to scientists but never before found in the Nordic country, kukharenkoite and cordylite were identified at the Sokli deposit belonging to the Finnish Minerals Group as it charted the occurrence of rare earth elements at the site, the company said in a statement on Monday.

Finland is emerging as a key mining and processing hub for battery metals. Sokli is the world’s largest carbonatite deposit and could produce at least 10% of the amount of rare earth elements needed annually in Europe to make permanent magnets, the state-owned company said. Those are used in electric cars, wind turbines, and solar panels.

“These findings are another step toward achieving our goal of exploiting this unique mineral deposit in safeguarding the raw materials’ self-sufficiency of Europe,” Project Director Pasi Heino said. “The Western world’s business opportunities associated with REE are growing, and the production of magnets is among the key ways of advancing the use of renewable energy and the electrification of transport,” he added.

Read More: Finland Tightens Mining Law as Demand for Minerals Surges

©2023 Bloomberg L.P.