Considering the potential chromite resources of Mirdita (Albania), Troodos (Cyprus) and Muğla (Turkey) ophiolites

Chromitites are economically relevant sources for chromium, and platinum-group elements (PGE). Since chromium is resistant to corrosion and abrasion, it is a vital item in stainless (74%), alloy steel markets (19%) and refractory materials. The PGE are used in catalytic converters, auto-catalysts, chemical manufacture, electrical products, petroleum refining, and jewelry.The European Commission published the global chromite production in 2020, which amounts to 40 million tons. Currently, the primary chromite production stems from South Africa (46%), followed by Kazakhstan (16%), Turkey (11%), and India (10%). Albania (2%) is the third-largest producer of chromite in Europe after Turkey (11%) and Finland (4%). Although Cyprus has chromite resources, there is currently no economic mining activity in this country. However, Cyprus could be an additional important supplier since it belongs to the European Union and can thus advance as an essential production country for the European Union. Due to the limiting countries mining chromite and the limitation in the refining step, there is a risk that the chromium supply could lead to bottlenecks.After studying the chromitites of three different places: Mirdita (Albania), Troodos (Cyprus) and Muğla (Turkey) ophiolites from point of Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Electron Prob Microanalyzer (EPM). Our preliminary data shows that the chromitites of the different deposits show similarities. However, our data sets also shows that the chromium concentrations in Cyprus are lower compared to the samples from Turkey and Albania. Further research on these samples sets is needed. Therefore, we will conduct Raman spectroscopy and carry out further geochemical and petrological studies to understand the genesis of the chromite deposits.