Spain’s Geological and Mining Institute (IGME) said airborne mineral surveys covering 100,000 square kilometres will begin within weeks under a five year exploration program running from 2026 to 2030, with estimated investment of 197 million euros from government funded work and private spending. The flights will gather magnetic, radiometric and gravity data across the Central Iberian, Ossa-Morena and South Portuguese geological zones, flying lines 400 metres apart at about 100 metres, with completion scheduled for June 30, and artificial intelligence methods will be used to build predictive models of where mineralisation sits below the surface.
The first investigation areas are San Silvestre de Guzmán in Huelva province, targeting copper and elements associated with polymetallic sulphides including germanium, gallium and indium, and Morille in Salamanca province, targeting tungsten, tin, niobium, tantalum and lithium. At a Wednesday roundtable, explorers pressed IGME officials on how the spending will be allocated and how quickly survey results will reach companies, and officials cautioned that public funding still depends on annual appropriations while Spain operates under an extended budget.