The problem addressed by the OPTIMINER project is multi-faceted and significant in the European context. Europe's mining industry is grappling with the pressing need to efficiently and sustainably recover CRMs from increasingly complex and low-grade ores. OPTIMINER offers a comprehensive solution to Europe's mining challenges, encompassing five Key Exploitable Results (KERs). REMINER focuses on advanced technologies for efficient CRM recovery. These include smart ore sorters, membrane-based hydrometallurgical processes, bioleaching, and phytomining. They will comprise a marketplace of technologies that will be offered to the extractive industry through an innovative AI-enabled CRM Recovery Selector. DIGIMINER offers a digital platform for smart monitoring and control. It is enhanced with a Decision Support System and an NLP-based digital assistant, the Virtual Miner. Moreover, Digital Twins of the recovery pilot plants will be created to optimise productivity and provide with simulation capacities. ECOMINER delivers services enhancing sustainability and resilience. It boosts resource management and efficiency by designing a toolkit to optimise energy, water usage and waste valorisation, along with strategies for toxicity management and LCA. Financial sustainability is tackled by using an AI-enabled Market Observatory system to provide knowledge support and resilience to the end user. DEMOMINER showcases pilot lines for CRM recovery across different materials and geographical locations. Specifically, we are proposing 6 use cases in Spain, Greece, Poland, Finland and Chile, while focusing on CRM recovery, namely magnesium, tungsten, REE (esp. Neodymium), Copper, Cobalt and Coking Coal. GLOBEMINER promotes increased awareness and market uptake, highlighting the strategic EU-Chile strategic cooperation. Together, these components form an integrated approach to revolutionize CRM recovery, ensuring environmental sustainability and operational efficiency.

PERMANET is a Sustainable REE Innovation and Supply Network covering the full Rare Earth Elements (REE) Permanent Magnet (PM) value chain. It is structured upon 5 layers: 1) Three Sustainable, Connected Tech ‘Hubs’ segmented along the full REE PM value chain and organizing thematic collaborative R&D and supply ecosystems 2) 13 fully Scalable Innovations to reach TRL7 and expand in scale and deployment range along the entire value chain 3) A structural layer of R&D infrastructure, equipment and services to fuel Pilot and Demonstration activities 4) Five Enabling “Engines” addressing the key conditions for sustainable and competitive REE supply 5) All embedded within a single PERMANET Network Infrastructure with its own, sustainable organizational model. The Network accelerates leading-edge innovations, from REE extraction from mining tailings and hydrometallurgical processes to oxide reduction and innovative production processes, all the way to the production of innovative PM and their testing by end users in industrial environment across 1/ E-Mobility 2/ Energy 3/ Industrial Equipment. PERMANET also secures key sources of REE such as leading mining projects from the EU and Partner Countries, as well as End of Life (EoL) sectors (WEEE, EV, etc.). The project relies on enabling activities ranging from strategic venturing to investment support to build sub-optimal EU REE PM Segments. The project unlocks viable reserves of REE including unconventional sources and will demonstrate novel, cost-effective, and environmentally sound REE extraction, processing, and separation routes, as well as demonstrate the first EU hub for PM boosting circular PM technologies to deploy at market scale. The project is ready to be fully integrated with other EU-backed PM Hubs and aims to grow into a fully-fledged Pan-EU pilot and demonstration infrastructure to remain sustainable post-funding.