The energy transition needs materials. Many of them. The International Energy Agency estimates that, on a pathway consistent with climate goals, production of the minerals required for clean energy technologies may need to increase sixfold between 2020 and 2040. Scaling up conventional extraction at that pace could aggravate already-known environmental and social impacts. Hence the growing interest in finding other ways to obtain these materials. One of them draws on processes that have been taking place in nature for billions of years: the interaction between microorganisms and minerals.
Certain microorganisms are able to interact with minerals and transform their chemical composition. Today, this natural capacity is being harnessed in industrial and experimental processes to recover raw materials from low-grade ores, mining waste, and other secondary materials that conventional methods handle only with difficulty, at high cost, or with low profitability. The most common process involves bacteria, fungi, or archaea promoting the dissolution of minerals through their metabolism, releasing the metals into a solution from which they can subsequently be extracted. In certain processes, it can require less energy than some conventional techniques.
It is neither a new technology nor experimental in all of its applications. It has been applied at industrial scale for decades in copper extraction, with established operations in Chile, Zambia, Australia, and Iran. It is also used in the processing of certain minerals such as gold. Interest, however, has extended to other metals whose demand is rising: nickel, cobalt, rare earths, and even materials present in spent batteries and electronic waste. This last avenue connects it directly with the circular economy: converting what is today an environmental liability into a secondary source of raw materials.
There are also more speculative lines of research. One examines the possible application of biomining on the seabed, where metals such as manganese and cobalt accumulate. Another, drawing on an experiment conducted by the European Space Agency aboard the International Space Station in 2019, suggests that certain microorganisms could extract rare earths from rocks similar to those of the Moon or Mars. These remain ideas far removed from any practical application, but they illustrate the field's potential reach.
The technology also has significant limitations. Biological processes tend to be slower than conventional ones, laboratory results do not always scale well to industrial settings, and the environmental footprint, while potentially smaller under controlled conditions, is not zero. The management of acidic effluents and the use of modified microorganisms raise technical, environmental, and regulatory questions that still require clear answers. Moreover, a large share of critical minerals is concentrated in countries of the Global South. How the benefits are distributed matters as much as how the technique works.
Biomining will not displace conventional mining. But in a scenario of mounting pressure on raw materials, it can serve as a useful tool within a broader strategy: making use of deposits that are not currently viable, reducing waste, and recovering materials from secondary sources. The capacity of microorganisms to transform minerals is beginning to occupy a place of its own in the debate over how to obtain the materials the energy transition requires.
For further information, see:
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Thiyagarajulu, Nathiya, Divya Yuvaraj, P. Gopinathan, et al. «Assessment on Sustainable Biomining: Integrating Environmental Responsibility and Economic Viability». Land Degradation & Development 37, n.o 1 (2026): 3-27. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.70107.
Turner, James Morton. «The matter of a clean energy future». Science 376, n.o 6600 (2022): 1361-1361. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.add5094.