Overview
- A deal announced Thursday between Saxony Minerals & Exploration (SME) and Singapore’s Prime Group would transfer the company for €150 million, but it still needs clearance from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs.
- SME’s chief said the purchase price would repay shareholders and settle debts after a 2019 bond raised about €7 million instead of the hoped-for up to €30 million, which forced the search for a buyer.
- The Saxon mining authority says no excavation has begun, and SME now targets the end of 2028 to start output after planning a 2‑kilometer ramp to reach ore bodies designed to yield about 400,000 tonnes a year.
- Political and local pushback has grown as the BSW faction in Saxony’s state parliament on Friday urged Berlin to block the sale, while residents warn of more truck traffic, radon exposure, and polluted mine water.
- Wolfram, which the EU lists as a critical raw material, saw record prices in 2025 alongside a surge in tin near $50,000 per tonne as China cut output and tightened exports, a shift that makes the Pöhla project more attractive to investors.