Joint efforts of Ukraine and Great Britain in the field of critical minerals: from defense to investment

As part of his visit to London, the Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, Yehor Perelyhin, met with the British Minister for European Affairs, Stephen Doughty. The main topic of the negotiations is the creation of a joint working group to integrate the efforts of the state, mining companies, and financial institutions to attract investments, prepare priority deposits for development, and increase security in this area.

Joint initiative in the field of strategic raw materials

The key goal of the meeting was to decide to form a joint working group to develop Ukrainian potential in a strategically important sphere for the economy and defense.

The group aims to unite:

State bodies of both countries;
Leading mining and consulting companies;
Financial institutions.
It is planned to focus on minerals and metals that are essential to modern technologies and the defense industry.

Financing and attraction of investments from the USA

A separate item in the negotiations was financing the development of Ukrainian deposits.

The financing mechanism of “Private PPF” from the USA was discussed – a tool that can open new opportunities for attracting investments. During the meeting, it was also decided to prepare a feasibility study for one or two priority deposits, an essential step in transforming potential reserves into real investment projects.

Occupational safety and professional development

Cooperation between Ukraine and Great Britain will not be limited to investments. An important aspect will be the development of human capital and the improvement of working conditions in the mining sector, given the high risks.

The following were discussed during the meeting:

Opportunities for upgrading the qualifications of Ukrainian specialists and geologists.

A joint project focused on occupational safety in the industry, to protect the life and health of workers engaged in the extraction of critical minerals.

At the next stage, the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, together with the FCDO (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Great Britain), will prepare a list of companies invited to participate in joint activities and develop a detailed work plan.