Latest news with #HenrikGrind
News.com.au
4 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Nordic Resources strikes gold in world's leading mining jurisdiction
Nordic Resources has operations in a jurisdiction crowned as the world's most attractive for mining investment Portfolio consists of three newly acquired gold projects holding more than 1.2Moz of gold resources as well as one of Europe's largest undeveloped nickel deposits We chat to managing director Rob Wrixon and newly appointed exploration manager Henrik Grind about the country's under explored potential Finland has leapfrogged traditional mining hubs to claim the number one position in the Fraser Institute's recent annual global mining survey, positioning Nordic Resources among a select group of explorers operating in the world's most investment-friendly jurisdiction. The Nordic nation's rise to the top of the Investment Attractiveness Index, bypassing Nevada and Alaska, reflects its combination of supportive government policies and mineral abundance. Nordic Resources (ASX:NNL) managing director Rob Wrixon told Stockhead that Finland's' first-world infrastructure and pragmatic approach to natural resources contributed to its appeal as a mining jurisdiction. But despite the current enthusiasm surrounding Finland's exploration prospects, traditionally the country hasn't always seen the same intensity of exploration as other global hotspots. Before joining the EU in the mid 1990s, Finland's exploration sector was entirely government-controlled, limited to the Geological Survey (GTK) and Outokumpu – one of the country's oldest mining companies. During that time, the Mining Act of 1965 was still in force but EU directives began to shape the country's mining law in the way of environmental permitting, public consultation and land use planning procedures. The new Finnish Mining Act eventually came into effect in 2011, influenced by EU obligations and modern best practices which made Finland more attractive to foreign investors. 'There hasn't always been this high level of exploration carried out in Finland like there has been in other jurisdictions, so while it is geologically rich, it is also very underexplored,' Wrixon said. 'Finland has a very good cost structure, it's very reasonable to run operations there compared to places like Australia and Canada, it has a power grid with a mix of coal, nuclear, natural gas and a huge amount of wind power and it has first-world infrastructure – in fact, its's probably the definition of first-world infrastructure. 'If you look at mines that are successful in the country like Boliden's Kevitsa mine for example, it is a large, low-grade deposit but Finland makes them work because of the combination of all these things,' he added. 'It is a great place to set up a mine.' Tech-driven mining edge According to Nordic Resources' newly appointed country manager and former manager of Boliden's 10Mtpa Kevitsa nickel-copper mine, Henrik Grind, Finland's mining equipment providers like Sandvik foster a collaborative environment for innovation by having close ties with universities and research institutions. This close relationship helps drive advancement in mining technology and ensures that research findings are translated into practical solutions for the mining and resources sector. Another interesting point is Finland's reliable internet connectivity, which consistently ranks high in global comparisons for mobile and fixed broadband speeds. Grind said high-speed connections were available even in remote rural areas, enabling remote work and virtual collaboration with global teams. But despite the benefits and advantages, there's very few other ASX listed players operating in the region, apart from Latitude 66 (ASX:LAT), Kingsrose Mining (ASX:KRM) and Resource Mining Corporation (ASX:RMI). Over 1.2Moz of gold and a top tier nickel deposit Nordic Resources' focus on the historically underexplored northern European country is paying dividends, with the company now holding over 1.2Moz of gold resources alongside one of Europe's largest, undeveloped nickel deposits. The portfolio includes three recently acquired gold projects in central Finland's Middle Ostrobothnia Gold Belt (MOGB), with two processing plants nearby that provide options for toll treatment alongside the 'standalone 'plant option. All three projects sit within 50km of each other and were acquired from Swedish company Northgold AB. 'We were mainly attracted to the assets because of the upside there,' Wrixon said. 'With two- and a-bit years of drilling, Kopsa's resource increased from 333,000 ounces to 815,000 ounces from only 6,600 metres of drilling which is unbelievably impressive. 'And it said to me that if it's growing that quickly, there should be even more mineralisation there and Northgold was struggling to raise money,' he added. 'It was Swedish listed and while there are some mining companies listed in Sweden they tend to be at the big end of town, there's not much in the way of mining exploration. 'We thought it would be great to put the two companies together by way of a merger.' Kopsa's 23.2Mt resource highlights MOGB potential The Kopsa project is by far the largest and most advanced project in the MOGB, hosting a near-surface gold-copper resource of 23.2Mt grading 1.09gt gold equivalent, 69% of which is in the higher confidence indicated category. But there also hasn't been a hole put into Hirsikangas or Kiimala Trend – the company's other two newly acquired assets in the region - for many years. Kiimala Trend is already shaping up to be a significant project on its own after a review found the Angesneva prospect along a discontinuous 15km trend, which had enough certainty for the definition of an indicated resource of 3.85Mt at 1.19g/t gold, or 147,000oz of contained gold. 'From a pure exploration point of view, all three projects are wildly underexplored and there's a chance to get a really large gold resource base by putting more drill holes in, that much is clear,' Wrixon said. 'But what really makes this exciting is that we already have over 1.2 million ounces of gold in resources, which is more than enough to get started, and we have plants in the region, so even if we didn't drill another drill hole or add an extra ounce, we have enough for what we think would be a very successful operation. 'Now that we know that this type of material works at today's gold price, even Kopsa with 1.1 grams per tonne average grade, that still pays you $115 per tonne which is good payability,' Wrixon said. 'The cherry on top is, if we get the resource base big enough, it justifies building our own plant.' A maiden drilling program is already underway at Kopsa, set to drill about 4500m over shallow extensions and new targets as well as deeper geophysical targets to better understand the system with resource updates to follow. Nordic Resources also plans to drill two to three other known gold prospects at the Kiimala Trend gold project later this year with about 500-1,000m of diamond drilling. Pulju sits among giants in Finland's Lapland At the same time, work is still playing out in the background at the explorer's Pulju nickel project in Finland's Central Lapland Greenstone Belt. The project is ~50km north of the municipality of Kittilä, which also hosts western Europe's largest gold mine, Suurikuusikko, operated by Agnico Eagle. It sits within the same geological setting as the world-class Kevitsa nickel deposit and boasts a resource at the Hotinvaara prospect of 418Mt at 0.21% nickel or 862,800t of contained nickel. That represents just 5km2 or 2% of the total 240km2 area within the wider Pulju asset area. Wrixon said the company was looking to find a partner to take the project forward while the focus remained on gold.
News.com.au
11-08-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Break It Down: Nordic Resources appoints country manager in Finland
Nordic Resources appoints Henrik Grind as country manager to oversee the company's exploration across its Finnish portfolio.
