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The ore of the future is not mined, it’s refined.

Precipitated calcium carbonate produced from industrial waste.

Discover the technologyWatch the film

FutuOre is pioneering a fundamental shift in how the world obtains essential materials. We don’t dig deeper – we think deeper.

Because the ore of tomorrow isn’t buried underground; it’s hiding in plain sight within industrial waste streams, waiting to be transformed.

Our resilience is matched only by our resourcefulness. Where others see ash, we see opportunity. Where others accept environmental compromise, we engineer breakthrough solutions that benefit industries and the planet alike. This isn’t incremental improvement – it’s revolutionary thinking that transforms the very definition of what constitutes a resource in the modern era.

The circular economy isn’t a distant aspiration – it’s our operating system. We move beyond mere sustainability promises, offsetting and greenwashing, towards measurable climate action and verified resource innovation. Every ton of material we produce captures carbon rather than releasing it, every process recirculates rather than consumes, and every product demonstrates industrial progress and environmental regeneration.

Technology valorizing industrial waste into materials high in demand

Our production technology upcycles fly and furnace oil shale ashes from electricity generation into valuable raw materials. It was developed in cooperation with researchers from Ragn-Sells, TalTech and the University of Tartu.

  1. Valorizing industrial waste

    Fly and furnace oil shale ash is left over from electricity generation.

  2. Ash hills

    Nearly 600 million tonnes of oil shale ash are deposited in Ida-Viru county.

  3. Transport

    Trucks bring the ash to our demo plant in Narva, near the ash hills.

  4. Demo plant

    The ash is combined with CO₂, which stays bound in the product. No combustion, no exhaust gases.

  5. New materials

    Precipitated calcium carbonate and lime fertilizer.

Zero-waste production

  • Process water circulates
  • By-products become new products
  • Production is free of waste and emission generation
  • All materials stay in circulation

One of the largest circular economy projects in Northern Europe.

R-S OSA Service OÜ is a subsidiary of the Ragn-Sells Group. We are turning the oil shale ash deposited in Ida-Viru county into valuable raw materials. It is the first project of its kind, and a unique and ground-breaking one worldwide.

The first studies on producing calcium carbonate were carried out in 2016 at the Ragn-Sells laboratory in Sweden. In 2019 Ragn-Sells AS established the subsidiary that leads the project today.

Benefits for nature and people.

Upcycling oil shale ash and carbon dioxide enables to generate high demand and partially critical raw materials from secondary industrial waste source. It reduces the extraction of natural resources and the carbon dioxide emissions of mining.

A grey hill of oil shale ash with grass and young trees at its foot

The project will create jobs in Ida-Viru county, in production and in related fields such as logistics, and it makes better use of existing roads, railways and ports. More business activity means higher local tax revenue for the benefit of the community.

Two workers in hard hats and high-visibility jackets looking at an industrial plant

Partners

Funding

FunderProgrammeAmount
Enterprise EstoniaApplied research, 2021€255,269
ArchimedesSmart Specialization Applied Research programme€204,000
European Cohesion FundDemo plant support€1,327,261.50
European Cohesion FundProduct development of calcium carbonate€1,004,229

From waste to valuable products

White calcium carbonate powder in glass petri dishesMain product

Ultra-pure calcium carbonate

Its purity would even match the criteria of food and pharmaceutical sectors, but since the ash comes from industry, it will be used in the paint, plastic and construction industries.

Our technology lets us adjust the size and shape of the particles to meet demanding requirements.

Conventionally, calcium carbonate is mined and processed by combustion, which has a high environmental impact.

  • Lime fertilizer for farmers

    Lime recovered from the ash improves soil conditions and adds microelements that plants need.

  • Fillers for the manufacturing industry.

    Another by-product is a silicate-rich material that can be used, for example, as backfill in construction. Ragn-Sells Group is developing the best application for it, and it can be recycled again later.

  • Future products

    Oil shale ash is also a source of critical elements, and we are exploring how to recover magnesium, aluminium, iron, zinc and silicon.

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