INFACT Project

Innovative, Non-Invasive and Fully Acceptable Exploration Technologies

The future of mineral exploration in the EU

Innovative, Non-Invasive and Fully Acceptable Exploration Technologies

The future of mineral exploration in the EU

Dialogue & Inclusion

INFACT is based on nurturing a strong stakeholder dialog and communication throughout the project and beyond it. It aims in achieving a SLO (social licence to operate) for novel exploration techniques and consequentially their wide acceptance.

Research & Education

With the aim to achieve the cutting-edge exploration approach, top researchers and experts are engaged in the project. A special attention is given to identifying the right education-related mechanisms for addressing various stakeholder groups. Academic participation in INFACT assures its credibility and unbiased approach.

Civil Society

The results of INFACT will benefit to the wider European society, whether in a form of environmental friendly and socially acceptable exploration techniques or in a form of rising mineral resources security. Engaging society on all levels, horizontally and vertically, is the key issue for INFACT.

Legislation & Policy

Assessing the legal and legislative frames within European countries in the field of the exploration, including existing or potential obstacles, and finding the best practices and policies. It will provide a practical and acceptable roadmap towards a Europe that presents a more attractive investment target for the exploration industry, which will improve systems that affect exploration conditions in Europe.

Industry & Business

INFACT targets the conditions that limit the effectiveness of the exploration industry and development of innovative non-invasive exploration tools that will pave the path to better, more effective, environmentally friendly, and publicly acceptable approaches to mining in Europe.

INFACT Project

Europe is about to become more attractive for the exploration of minerals. In the framework of the EU-funded INFACT project, partners drawn from research and industry are developing innovative, non-invasive exploration technologies and will test them under realistic conditions.

The project aims at developing technologies that are more acceptable to society and that will invigorate and equip the exploration industry, unlocking unrealised potential in new and mature areas. For this purpose, three European reference areas are being established in Germany (Geyer), Finland (Sakatti) and Spain (Minas de Ríotinto, Gerena).

Latest News

Available resources on ESG Reporting Roundtables

Feb 4, 2021

The INFACT project, PERC and Responsible Raw Materials have co-hosted a series of virtual round table discussions on the inclusion of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors in reporting of mineral deposit estimates and exploration results globally on...

INFACT in the European Geologist journal

Dec 15, 2020

The INFACT project has been presented in the last issue of the European Geologist journal. The paper is entitled “Integrating new tactics for mineral exploration and Social License to Operate into geoscientists’ training and life-long learning: Lessons learned through...

Technology watch of INFACT

Dec 1, 2020

Technology watch activities are essential to systematically analyse and monitor new technology developments in the field of less invasive mineral exploration that could be tested and further developed at INFACT European Reference Sites (ERS). In order to increase the...

View all

Dialogue & Inclusion

INFACT is based on nurturing a strong stakeholder dialog and communication throughout the project and beyond it. It aims in achieving a SLO (social licence to operate) for novel exploration techniques and consequentially their wide acceptance.

Research & Education

With the aim to achieve the cutting-edge exploration approach, top researchers and experts are engaged in the project. A special attention is given to identifying the right education-related mechanisms for addressing various stakeholder groups. Academic participation in INFACT assures its credibility and unbiased approach.

Civil Society

The results of INFACT will benefit to the wider European society, whether in a form of environmental friendly and socially acceptable exploration techniques or in a form of rising mineral resources security. Engaging society on all levels, horizontally and vertically, is the key issue for INFACT.

Legislation & Policy

Assessing the legal and legislative frames within European countries in the field of the exploration, including existing or potential obstacles, and finding the best practices and policies. It will provide a practical and acceptable roadmap towards a Europe that presents a more attractive investment target for the exploration industry, which will improve systems that affect exploration conditions in Europe.

Industry & Business

INFACT targets the conditions that limit the effectiveness of the exploration industry and development of innovative non-invasive exploration tools that will pave the path to better, more effective, environmentally friendly, and publicly acceptable approaches to mining in Europe.

Infact project

Europe is about to become more attractive for the exploration of raw materials. In the framework of the EU-funded INFACT project, partners drawn from research and industry are developing innovative, non-invasive exploration technologies and will test them under realistic conditions. The project aims at developing technologies that are more acceptable to society and that will invigorate and equip the exploration industry, unlocking unrealised potential in new and mature areas. For this purpose, three European reference areas are being established in Germany (Geyer), Finland (Sakatti) and Spain (Minas de Ríotinto, Gerena).

Latest News

Available resources on ESG Reporting Roundtables

Feb 4, 2021

The INFACT project, PERC and Responsible Raw Materials have co-hosted a series of virtual round table discussions on the inclusion of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors in reporting of mineral deposit estimates and exploration results globally on...

INFACT in the European Geologist journal

Dec 15, 2020

The INFACT project has been presented in the last issue of the European Geologist journal. The paper is entitled “Integrating new tactics for mineral exploration and Social License to Operate into geoscientists’ training and life-long learning: Lessons learned through...

Technology watch of INFACT

Dec 1, 2020

Technology watch activities are essential to systematically analyse and monitor new technology developments in the field of less invasive mineral exploration that could be tested and further developed at INFACT European Reference Sites (ERS). In order to increase the...

View all

Reference regions

North

Sakatti is a copper-nickel-platinum group elements deposit in the far north of Finland, situated around 150 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle. It is owned by Anglo American.

Centre

This reference region centers around the small town of Geyer in the Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge), situated app. 110 kilometers south of Leipzig, Eastern part of Germany, and with a long history of ore mining. The region is known for its deposits of tin, zinc, tungsten, molybdenum, copper, iron, silver and indium.

South

This reference region comprises two mining sites in the Iberian Pyrite Belt, both in Andalusia, South of Spain:

Cobre Las Cruces is an open pit copper mine and on-site plant in Gerena, 20 kilometers northwest of Seville. It is operated by First Quantum Minerals.

Minas de Ríotinto is a well-known ancient opencast polymetallic mine located in Huelva province, 65 kilometers northwest of Seville. It is operated by Atalaya Mining.

Facts in brief

Funding organization

EU/ H2020

Timeframe

Nov 2017 – Oct 2020

Funding amount

5.6 Mio €

Coordinator

Helmholtz Institute Freiberg for Resource Technology at Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf

Partners

17 partners from research and academia, industry, state and not-for-profit organizations drawn from seven countries. Altogether they have extensive experience in mining, geology, exploration, IT, social science and communication.

Agencia de Innovation y Desarrollo (IDEA), Anglo American Sakatti Oy, Arhus Geophysics, Atalaya Mining, ATClave, Cobre las Cruces, Dialogik, European Federation of Geologists (EFG), Fraunhofer IAO, GALSA (Geotech), Geognosia, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, Oulu Mining School, SRK Exploration Services, Supracon, SYKE, University of Eastern Finland.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement nº 776487.