Recycling and the transition towards a circular economy are currently progressing sadly slowly, if at all. Furthermore, EU action has mainly focused on municipal waste…
FinnMateria looks at mines from a circular economy perspective
The FinnMateria fair for mining, quarrying and minerals will be held in Jyväskylä on 4–5 November 2026.
This year, the event expands its perspective from mining and mineral processing to materials recycling and resource-efficient solutions. The program will cover topics such as the recovery of critical raw materials, mining waste, the utilization of side streams, and new operating models for waste management.
In addition to traditional mining, Finnmateria also examines urban mines.
Over 180 exhibitors are expected at the Jyväskylä Pavilion.
New products from mining side streams
Circular economy is visible In the Finnmateria program throughout the entire event.
In addition to traditional mining, urban mining, i.e. secondary raw materials recovered from waste, is also on display.
Business Director, Stena Recycling Hanna Seppälä provides practical examples of how critical raw materials can be recovered from batteries in recycling processes.
VTT Research Professor Päivi Kinnunen discusses comprehensive material cycles in mining in its Circular Mining presentation. Topics include, for example, the reprocessing of tailings, closing water cycles, and the processing of mineral side streams into new products.
Circular economy study helps in the utilization of extractive waste
The utilization of extractive waste is also being examined by AFRY's leading expert Soile Nieminen in the speech.
The presentation discusses the circular economy study as part of the waste management plan for extractive waste and how recovery can be linked to the technical and economic planning of a mining project.
CEO of the Finnish Recycling Industry Association Mia Nores in turn examines the role of recycled raw materials in the raw material base of Finnish industry and the conditions for increasing their use. According to Nores, a more significant part of Finland's industrial raw material base can be built from recycled raw materials.
Critical raw materials recovered from electronic waste and batteries
A special day has been dedicated to the recycling of critical minerals on Wednesday, November 4, 2026. Frontiers in Recycling and Recovery of Critical Minerals -seminar.
The program addresses, for example, the recovery of battery materials and rare earth metals, the utilization of secondary material streams in the battery chain, and the recycling of critical raw materials contained in batteries and electronic waste.
The entire ecosystem to ensure the availability of critical raw materials
The program on Thursday, November 5, 2026 will be opened by the leader of the ecosystem program led by Sokl as a leading company. Jani Adolfsson-TallqvistThe More than a Mine locomotive program aims to make Finland a leading competence center for critical raw materials.
The transformation of waste management into a circular economy is opened by the circular economy manager at Kiertokaari Oy Antero KiljunenThe presentation will review the municipal waste management company's research and development projects and new methods of processing waste and side streams.
NG Nordic Tero Holländer talks about processing scrap metal into traceable recycled raw material.
Mine closure guide coming in early 2027
On the same day, GTK's leading expert Päivi Kauppila presents a guide being prepared for mine closure and experiences from field testing of mine waste.
CTO of Resand Oy Jarkko Partinen presents a closed cycle of foundry sand, where the sand can be recycled repeatedly back into use.
Head of the Department of Separation Technology, LUT University Sami Estonian in turn deals with the recovery of valuable metals from secondary sources and the utilization of industrial side streams as building materials.
FinnMateria will be held at the Jyväskylä Pavilion on November 4–5, 2026.
Text: Uusiuutisten editorial team
Photo: Sokli. Sokli's mineral reserves in Savukoski can strengthen Europe's self-sufficiency in critical raw materials.
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