Bucharest, August 9, 2025 – RBJ – The Minister of Economy in Bucharest announced that the Romanian state remains the beneficiary of the license, and Romania will be able to resume the exploitation of graphite from Baia de Fier in Gorj.
The executive adopted, in yesterday’s meeting, a Government decision. The normative act approves the additional act no. 2/2025 to the Concession License no. 634/1999 of the exploitation activity of graphite shale (graphite rock) in the Ungurelaşu-Polovragi perimeter, Gorj county.
“An extremely valuable mineral, sought after all over the world, remains the property of Romania and will produce value for our economy. I fought for this graphite before I was a minister, and today, a month and a half after taking office, I have ensured that this unique resource will be exploited in the interest of Romania. It will bring jobs, economic development and pride to Romanians. I have taken care of what is ours”, declared the Minister of Economy
The old exploitation license expires and, in case of non-extension, there is a risk of losing it.
Graphene, which is obtained by exfoliating graphite, is considered the miracle mineral, raising technological barriers in the most modern and important industries such as microelectronics, energy or aerospace.
In the 2000s, in the Baia de Fier area, Gorj County, 40,000 tons of graphite were exploited annually. Now, the leader in graphite exploitation in Europe is Norway, which processes 10,000 tons of graphite annually. So, four times more can be produced in Romania. In addition, Romanian graphite has a fantastic quality, with a purity of 98%.
The European Commission has adopted, for the first time, a list of 47 strategic projects to stimulate domestic capacities for strategic raw materials, which, in turn, would strengthen the European raw materials value chain and diversify supply sources. These will be located in 13 countries.
Romania is on the list with three projects, belonging to the following companies: Euro Sun Mining – copper (owner of the Rovina mining project), Societatea Națională a Sării – graphite and Verde Magnesium (magnesium), Romania being the only country in which the latter resource will be exploited.
