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【Ferro-alloys.com】: London-based mining services provider Norge Mineraler says the closure of the Strait of Hormuz will have a direct impact on Europe’s ability to boost military capabilities, particularly if the supply of critical minerals is disrupted.

Norge Mineraler founder Michael Wurmser says sulphur is a particular point of concern since the Gulf provides 25% of the world’s supply.

Companies in the region produce sulphur as a byproduct of crude oil refining.

Sulphur is used in the extraction of copper and cobalt, which are, in turn, needed in significant quantities to ramp up military hardware production and maintenance.

Wurmser explains that while the world has fixated on what may happen with Brent crude oil prices, the second- and third-order impacts on critical minerals has been significantly overlooked but will prove no less impactful.

The price of sulphur has already risen by nearly 25% since the conflict in Iran started and by 165% on a year-on-year basis. Gulf-based refineries have cut down production owing to shipping constraints, Wurmer notes.

The Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed to most international commercial shipping. While not 100% physically blocked, the waterway is reportedly under a selective blockade by Iran.

This comes as Europe just started ramping up efforts to boost critical mineral production and military autonomy.

Wurmser suggests that Europe ramp up its own mineral extraction and production capabilities, since a switch to alternatives is not possible as it was when Europe needed to recalibrate its oil and gas supplies during the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

“Europe must look inwards for a long-term solution to these supply shocks. We will likely experience similar disruptions, possibly every few years, given the current volatile state of the world,” he says.

The EU set out a codified ’10-40-50’ plan for 2030, which aims for extraction to form 10% of all Europe’s mining needs, for 40% of refining to take place on the continent and for recycling to contribute 25%.

This represents a significant increase in Europe’s current production, yet still falls short of the ambition needed, Wurmser states.

He adds that key minerals such as phosphorus, lithium, manganese, graphite and copper, among many others, sit underneath European soil in vast quantities.

“Yet Europe’s plan for extracting this vital material that is key to the continent’s commercial and industrial future is disparate and unambitious at best, and potentially negligent at worst. How can the continent be expected to ramp up military capability without simultaneously increasing the supply of these minerals?” Wurmser questions.

At a time when economic hardship appears to be on the horizon, and when the world is scrambling around for alternative mineral supplies, Europe cannot afford to “sit on its hands”.

Wurmser warns that failure to act now would see billions in tax revenues lost, millions of tonnes of supplies remaining idle in the ground and prices rising ever higher as Iran’s chokehold over the Strait of Hormuz strengthens.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been an increasingly urgent need for Europe to "think vertically" about its strategic industries.

“This means building our own supply chains from extraction, to processing to end-use. This is especially the case in defence and food production. We no longer enjoy the luxury of a seamlessly integrated, stable global marketplace, meaning our ability to build economic resilience must increasingly be self-generated,” Wurmser points out.

He concludes that scrambling around and competing with the world’s strongest economies for a dwindling pool of minerals is not a sound economic or security strategy for Europe to pursue.

“It is one that would undermine our military capabilities, prematurely halting moves to strengthen European armed forces. Instead, to insulate us from future logistical shocks and grow a potentially prosperous industry, we must double down on our ability to extract and refine. Failure to do so will continue to leave us at the mercy of external disruption.”

• [Editor:Alakay]