Critical Metals Ltd subsidiary Recycling Industries Scandinavia AB is planning to build a vanadium recovery plant (VRP) in Pori, Finland. The plant will recover vanadium from industrial by-products and use CO2 gas captured from local manufacturing processes. The facility will realise circular economy ideas in the vanadium production. As vanadium is a valuable material for several major industries but is not produced in the EU, the European Commission has classified vanadium as a critical raw material.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the regional economic impact that the vanadium recovery plant in Pori could possibly exert. The evaluation focused on the Satakunta region surrounding the plant, but also considered other Finnish regions along with the impact at the national level. The study period covered both investment and operation phases, starting from 2023 and continuing until 2035. The assessment, which was conducted utilising a dynamic computable general equilibrium model, RegFinDyn, considered the VRP’s direct economic impact as well as the indirect impact.
According to the evaluation, the economy of Satakunta would benefit from the realisation of the VRP. During the investment phase (in 2023 and 2024), regional GDP, employment, and private consumption would rise due to increased investments, intensive construction, and increased labour incomes. During the operative phase (2025−2035), export would increase by about 1% compared with the baseline. Regional GDP would rise almost as much. Employment and private consumption would rise about 0.3−0.5% compared with the baseline.
Results also reveal that the VRP would affect not only Satakunta but also several other regions and the national economy. This assessment highlights the significance of Pori and other medium-sized Finnish cities: activities to attract investments and business ventures to such cities are widely reflected in regional development, and they may also benefit other areas and even the national economy.
Evaluation was conducted by Susanna Kujala and Outi Hakala.
Read the report here:
Susanna Kujala and Outi Hakala: The regional economic impact of the vanadium recovery plant on the Satakunta region - Exploring the economic potential of a circular economy project. Reports 219. University of Helsinki Ruralia Institute.
More information:
Susanna Kujala, Doctoral Researcher
University of Helsinki
Ruralia Institute
susanna.kujala@helsinki.fi