MPI faces problems securing land for magnesium ore processing project in central Romania

MPI is seeking land for a plant that would process magnesium ore extracted from the Rășinari-Valea Dobra-Valea Muntelui area in Sibiu County.

The rejection of the request to put the land up for auction blocks, at this stage, the possibility of locating the plant on the plot considered by the company, Radio Cluj reported, as quoted by Profit.ro. The decision came after the project generated concerns in the local community, with more than 100 people attending the Local Council meeting.

The magnesium ore would be extracted from the Rășinari-Valea Dobra-Valea Muntelui area, while the processing plant would have been located in Săliște if the land had been put up for auction by the local administration.

On September 9, Mineral Proiect Invest SA announced that it had obtained the concession licence for the exploitation of magnesian rock resources (magnesian serpentines) in the Valea Dobra perimeter in Sibiu County. The licence was approved by Order No. 529 of September 3, 2026, and published in the Official Gazette of Romania, Part I, No. 754 of September 7, 2026.

According to MPI, obtaining the licence marks a new stage in the development of MPI Magnesium, described by the company as the first integrated industrial magnesium project in the European Union to reach this stage of development. The project is intended to integrate the extraction of a European resource with its processing in Romania, creating added value within the European Union.