Recent coverage of the global mining sector by Investors Chronicle highlighted that waste processing is fast becoming a solid alternative revenue stream for resource companies around the world.
The article points to falling ore grades, the energy transition and the financial risks associated with traditional tailings storage as driving the shift towards reprocessing or ‘recycling’, in particular for critical minerals and rare earth metals, as demand for these is rapidly increasing due to their use in electric vehicles, data centres and wind turbines.
Also cited in the article were recently published insights from Marks & Clerk's Canadian partner Evangellos (Van) Vekris that demonstrate the correlation between mining industry players focus on secondary resource recovery, and the increase in the number of global patent filings in relation to reprocessing mining waste, which have seen an 18 percent increase in 2024 and 2025.
Recovery of Critical Minerals from Mining Waste Gains Momentum Amid Surging Global Demand
Van's analysis was originally featured in a recent article published by Marks & Clerk highlighting the various innovations and approaches taken by mining companies internationally to recover these minerals, including hydrometallurgical processing, and the related rise in global patent filings.
In another article published by Van which highlights the emerging opportunities for the Canadian mining sector to capitalise on the demand for critical minerals, due to their key role in modern technologies, to expand growth into global supply chains, and the innovative methods and processes being used to recover these minerals from mining waste.
Canadian mining companies and research institutions can also benefit from various government funding programs and initiatives, including the Ontario Critical Minerals Strategy to develop new technologies to help commercialize the waste extraction process and seek out patent protection for these innovations.
You can read the article by Investors Chronicle in full here.
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With the supply of critical industrial inputs far from assured, it’s little wonder that the mining industry is rapidly adopting secondary resource recovery. You get some idea of this through a parallel increase in the number of global patents filed in relation to reprocessing mining waste and legacy tailings. Industry analysis from intellectual property specialist Marks & Clerk points to an 18 per cent increase in 2024 and 2025.
