{"id":60103075,"date":"2025-10-07T19:27:40","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T18:27:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/?p=60103075"},"modified":"2025-10-14T09:46:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T08:46:19","slug":"fluorite-mexico-is-a-key-player-in-a-lesser-known-critical-mineral","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/energy\/fluorite-mexico-is-a-key-player-in-a-lesser-known-critical-mineral\/","title":{"rendered":"Fluorite: Mexico is a key player in a lesser-known critical mineral"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The global race to scale up clean energy has brought increasing international attention to the role of minerals, which have become strategically and geopolitically important thanks to their essential role in batteries, electric vehicles, wind turbines and solar panels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Compared to lithium<\/a>, nickel<\/a> and copper<\/a>, fluorite has received relatively little media coverage. But this crystalline mineral is essential to energy transitions, as a key source of chemicals used in various green technologies. For example, the production of an electric vehicle battery can require up to 10 times<\/a> more fluorite than lithium, while fluorite-based chemicals are used<\/a> to coat solar panels, providing protection from extreme temperatures and corrosion, while also insulating their circuits and improving efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2023, the European Union included fluorite, also known commercially as fluorspar, in its list of 34 critical raw materials<\/a>, while the United States has deemed it a priority mineral<\/a> since 2022. Together with China and other global powers, their companies and manufacturers are competing to secure supplies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mexico is currently the world\u2019s second-largest producer of fluorite, behind only China, which accounts for more than half<\/a> of the global supply, according to the US Geological Survey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2024, global fluorite production reached 9.5 million tonnes, of which Mexico contributed<\/a> 1.51 million tonnes \u2013 a record high for the country. Nearly half <\/a>of this production is exported as raw material, mostly to the US and the EU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But despite fluorite\u2019s importance in the global market, and its wide applications beyond just clean tech, studies have highlighted<\/a> how Mexico lacks policies for its mining sector that ensure extraction is not harmful to the environment or surrounding populations. Fluorite is extracted in open-pit mines, crushed, and chemically processed to concentrate and refine it, activities that can alter landscapes and generate significant environmental impacts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Semi-transparent<\/div>
Fluorite found in the Navidad mine in Durango, Mexico. Despite the importance in the global market of fluorite and its derivatives, studies have highlighted how Mexico lacks policies for its mining sector that ensure its extraction is not harmful to the environment or people (Image: John Cancalosi \/ Nature Picture Library \/ Alamy)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

For Beatriz Olivera, a development researcher and director of Engenera<\/a>, an energy, mining and environment NGO, Mexico must set out clear and comprehensive regulations. \u201cThe first step would be to unravel the mess of the mining law in the Supreme Court,\u201d she says, referring to the 2023 reform<\/a> of the country\u2019s mining law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This reform sought to regulate the sector and protect the environment by prohibiting mining activities in protected natural areas, prioritising water for human consumption, and mandating that wastes not harm populations, ecosystems or productive areas. However, Olivera spoke of a lack of enforcement and clear guidelines for its implementation in the years since, and a lack of political will to apply it, amid legal challenges<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe law was passed in 2023, but a group of opposition representatives filed an appeal to stop it,\u201d Olivera says. The appeal failed, but Olivera adds that there are as yet no plans around implementing the new law, and that the industry is still resisting<\/a> changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fluorite mining\u2019s impacts and risks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mexico has three notable fluorite mines, located in the northern states of San Luis Potos\u00ed, Durango, and Coahuila. The Las Cuevas mine in San Luis Potos\u00ed is the largest in the world, and has been active since the 1950s. It is owned by Fluorita de M\u00e9xico, a subsidiary of Koura, itself a subsidiary of the Mexican multinational Orbia Advance Corporation <\/a>(formerly Mexichem).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The environmental impacts linked to fluorite mining include various forms of pollution, the transformation of landscapes due to open-pit mining, and vast areas being dedicated to tailings dams for mining waste. The Mexican Water Institute has warned<\/a> of the possibility of waste spills, posing a risk to ecosystems and human health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Satellite<\/div>
Satellite image of the Las Cuevas mining complex in San Luis Potos\u00ed, Mexico. This is the largest fluorite mine in the world and has been in operation since the 1950s (Image: CNES \/ Airbus via Google Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Las Cuevas mining complex houses<\/a> seven tailings dams with a capacity of more than 2.1 million tonnes of waste: four are inactive and three are active, all of which are vulnerable to spills, and which some investigations have linked to<\/a> hazardous pollution of surrounding ecosystems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMining has contaminated water and soil,\u201d says Matheus Gigante, a doctor in chemistry and environmental technology from the Autonomous University of Nuevo Le\u00f3n. \u201cIf [this] water is used for irrigation, it increases the concentration of fluoride [in the soil] and can mobilise other contaminants.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Intake of fluoride, the chemical compound found in fluorite, can have both beneficial and negative effects. In many countries around the world, controlled additions of fluoride to drinking water supply are common, as this can help to reduce the incidence of dental cavities. However, in the case of prolonged and less controlled exposure, fluoride can cause<\/a> skeletal and dental fluorosis, which can weaken bones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As reported in the above mentioned investigation<\/a> at Las Cuevas by Earth Island and Proceso, Koura\u2019s parent company Orbia itself acknowledged the risks of leaks and spills in its 2021 annual report. But a Koura statement given to their reporters claimed: \u201cAny impact that the company may cause is expected and can be addressed with prevention or mitigation measures that reduce the impacts and do not affect the ecological balance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the last 25 years, Mexico\u2019s Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection has recorded <\/a>at least 66 spills from waste disposal facilities, the most recent of which occurred on 30 June, when a waste dam belonging to the Metales Rosmex mining company spilled<\/a> over 19,000 cubic metres of mining waste in the northern state of Sinaloa. This spill contaminated streams and lowland forests, with significant ecological and health effects. It led to the mine\u2019s closure and authorities warned of a risk of further run-off into water sources due to the season\u2019s rains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2006, investigations have also detected the presence<\/a> of heavy metals such as lead, arsenic and zinc in the air in and around the city of San Luis Potos\u00ed, as well as calcium fluoride contaminants<\/a> \u2013 products directly attributed to the high level of mining and metallurgical activity that has developed close to the city. Groundwater has also been found to contain arsenic and fluoride due to intensive well drilling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Zinc<\/div>
A zinc mining complex in San Luis Potos\u00ed, Mexico. Investigations have detected the presence of heavy metals such as lead, arsenic and zinc in the air in and around the city of San Luis Potos\u00ed, as well as calcium fluoride contaminants (Image: Caleo Photos \/ Alamy)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In addition to posing risks to landscapes and water, emissions from fluorite production can have a considerable impact. In its 2024 sustainability report<\/a>, Orbia reports that direct emissions from Koura\u2019s fluorite operations at Las Cuevas were equivalent to 16,590 tonnes of carbon dioxide, while indirect emissions from its electricity consumption totalled 19,000 tonnes. For comparison, producing<\/a> 1 tonne of copper in Chile can emit up to 7 tonnes of carbon dioxide, while producing 1 tonne of fluorite concentrate can produce<\/a> as much as 174 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An expanding market<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Demand for fluorite is projected to grow as the energy transition progresses. For lithium-ion batteries in electric cars alone, it could exceed 1.6 million tonnes by 2030, according to Benchmark Minerals<\/a>. The electronics industry and electrolytes \u2013 the liquids that allow the flow of electric current within certain electric car batteries \u2013 will reportedly be the fastest-growing markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>
Recommended<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/a>\n\n\n\n

With this growth in demand in mind, Luis Gonz\u00e1lez, director of local environmental NGO Cambio de Ruta, insists on starting with the basics for environmental protection. \u201cThe first thing is to measure air quality with an effective system. We don\u2019t have clear data. If we don\u2019t know what\u2019s polluting, we can\u2019t design public policies or address the problem appropriately,\u201d he concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Olivera, a national strategy for critical minerals without strong mining regulations \u201cwould open the door to more aggressive extraction\u201d with serious consequences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although there are no current plans from the government to specifically pursue expansion of the industry, it remains to be seen how Mexico will respond to a growing demand.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The country is the world\u2019s second largest producer of fluorite, a key input for clean energy technologies but one that has left its own environmental footprint<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3478,"featured_media":60103108,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[757],"tags":[537,566],"hashtags":[],"country":[50002597],"class_list":["post-60103075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-energy","tag-ecosystems","tag-mining","country-mexico"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFluorite: Mexico is a key player in a lesser-known critical mineral | Dialogue Earth<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The country is the world\u2019s second largest producer of fluorite, a key input for clean energy technologies but one that has left its own environmental footprint\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, 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