POLAR LITHIUM: A COMPROMISE BETWEEN A SUBSOIL USER, AUTHORITIES AND INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE ARCTIC (USING THE KOLMOZERSKOE DEPOSIT, MURMANSK REGION, AS AN EXAMPLE)

Potravny, I. M.¹, Nikonorov, S. M.², Lisyansky, A. B.³

1. Plekhanov Russian University of Economics (Moscow, Russian Federation)
2. Lomonosov Moscow State University (Moscow, Russian Federation)
3. Samara National Research University (Samara, Russian Federation)

The article was received on November 18, 2025

Bibliographic description: Potravny I. M., Nikonorov S. M., Lisyansky A. B. Polar lithium: a compromise between a subsoil user, authorities and indigenous peoples of the Arctic (using the Kolmozerskoe Deposit, Murmansk Region, as an example). Arctic: Ecology and Economy, 2026, vol. 16, no. 2.

Abstract:  The paper considers the development of the Kolmozerskoe lithium deposit in the Murmansk region, highlighting its impact on the environment and traditional crafts of the indigenous peoples of the North. The authors assess ecological and economic potential impacts of the deposit development, along with its costs and benefits. They substantiate an algorithm for taking into account the interests of subsoil users, authorities, and the indigenous peoples during the lithium deposit development in the Arctic, taking into account its life cycle, including public hearings, meetings and consultations with the parties concerned, ethnological expertise and monitoring, and the development of a plan and mechanism of interaction between the parties. The authors propose an economic mechanism to support the project implementation. It includes: the provision of state tax incentives, subsidized loan interest rates, the use of a mechanism similar to the Far Eastern concession for the creation of infrastructure and social facilities, the development of public-private partnerships, and co-financing of deposit development from the established climate fund, taking into account the lithium contribution to the electric vehicle production and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed mechanism and algorithm for justifying and making management decisions during the development of mineral deposits in the Arctic are universal and can be used to coordinate the interests of the parties concerned.

Keywords: lithium, Kolmozerskoe deposit, Arctic, Murmansk region, indigenous peoples of the North, mechanism of interaction between the parties

Funding:  

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