In the global race for clean, reliable energy, nuclear power is re-emerging as a key player. We often focus on the uranium that fuels the reactors, but the entire viability of the nuclear industry rests on a different, lesser-known material: fluorspar. This unassuming industrial mineral is the source of fluorine, an element so critical that without it, the modern nuclear fuel cycle would grind to a halt.

As the world accelerates towards an electric future, lithium has been crowned the king of the battery boom. It’s the element that gives the ubiquitous lithium-ion battery its name, and its supply chain is under constant scrutiny. But what if the key to unlocking the electric vehicle (EV) revolution lies not just in lithium, but in another, lesser-known mineral?