Temporary solution - but several steps remain before acute cement deficiency is eliminated

Comment regarding the fact that the Riksdag has now adopted the bill that enables the government to grant a temporary permit for limestone mining in exceptional cases.

Svemin welcomes the fact that the Riksdag has now adopted the bill that enables the government to grant a temporary permit for limestone mining in exceptional cases. This means that the government now has the opportunity to approve the application for an urgent three-year limestone mining permit that Cementa submitted on 21 September. This is necessary in order to avoid an extensive cement shortage in Sweden in the near future.

Maria Sunér CEO, Svemin comments:

– It is positive that the Riksdag has now approved the bill, but at the same time several steps remain before the threat of an acute cement shortage is eliminated.

The mining and minerals industry has for a long time pointed out shortcomings in the permit processes

However, the Cementa case is only one symptom of the dysfunctional permit processes that Swedish companies face. This requires action from politics to change. Among other things, time limits and role distribution need to be clarified. We see that there is a lack of a holistic view from a broader societal perspective, which means that important investments for climate change risk being stopped.

FURTHER READING

> Following the decision of the Supreme Court: Politics owns the issue of the cement crisis

> Svemin: “Short-term deadline does not change the system error with ineffective permit examinations”

> Kafka-like permit processes – a stop block for Sweden

> Cementa’s application rejected – cement supply crisis this autumn