Industrial Minerals

Research

Published: February 23rd 2015 | Last change: April 21st 2015

Industrial minerals are the most diverse group of mineral raw materials: they have industrial applications related to their physical and chemical properties (and not as a source for component metals). A wide variety of minerals and rocks are used in a large variety of products, from paper, cosmetics and plastics, fertilisers and food (e.g. as colouring), glass and ceramics, and many more. Norway is a major producer of a number of industrial minerals, being the world's most important source of olivine and of ground marble for use as a filler in paper and other applications.

Loading of limestone, Verdal harbour. Photo: Verdalskalk AS

Important industrial minerals and deposits in Norway include:

Carbonates (limestone, dolomite and marble): Norway has several major sources of limestone(calcium carbonate), dolomite (calcium-magnesium carbonate) and marble (limestone and dolomite recrystallized at high temperature and pressure). The largest deposits in operation include those in Brønnøy municipality (white calcite marble), Verdal (limestone), Tysfjord (limestone), Hammerfall (dolomite), Hekkelstrand (dolomite), Seljeli (dolomite), and Brevik (limestone) .

Feldspar, anorthosite and nepheline syenite: Sogn (anorthosite), Stjernøy (nepheline syenite) and Glamsland (feldspar, not in operation).

Graphite: Skaland.

Quartz and quartzite: Gamasfjell (Tana) (quartzite), Kragerø (quartzite), Melkfjell (quartzite), Nasafjell (hydrothermal quartz), Rana (hydrothermal quartz), Drag (hydrothermal quartz) and Svanvik (hydrothermal quartz).

Olivine: Åheim.

Talc: Bårstad and Linnajavri.

Titanium minerals: Tellnes (ilmenite), Engebøfjellet (rutile) and Bjerkreim-Sokndal (ilmenitte).

Apatite, vanadium og magnetite: Bjerkreim-Sokndal (all three), Misvær (apatitt)

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