Silmet
Silmet is an Estonian industrial processor of rare metals and rare-earth materials based in Sillamäe.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Silmet is an industrial materials company based in Sillamäe, northeastern Estonia. Its modern business is associated primarily with the processing of rare metals and rare-earth materials, especially niobium and tantalum. The company operates within Neo Performance Materials, an international materials group, and has historically produced and processed materials used in advanced industrial, chemical, electronic and energy-related applications. The organization’s roots extend to 1926, when the Swedish-Norwegian Eestimaa Õlikonsortsium was established to develop an oil-shale extraction and processing operation at Sillamäe. A tunnel oven was built in 1928, but the Great Depression interrupted production. Operations resumed in 1936 under the reorganized Baltic Oil Company, and a second tunnel oven was added in 1938. The original business focused on oil-shale processing and gasoline production rather than the rare-metal activities for which Silmet later became known. The plant was nationalized after the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940. Much of its infrastructure was destroyed during the Second World War, first during the retreat of Soviet forces and later during wartime disruption under German occupation. Reconstruction began after Soviet forces returned in 1944. In 1945, a state oil-shale processing plant was established at the site, followed in 1946 by the creation of Kombinat No. 7, a diversified industrial enterprise based on the mining and processing of Dictyonema argillite. During the early Soviet period, the Sillamäe operation produced uranium oxide from local Dictyonema argillite and later processed higher-grade uranium ores imported from several countries in the Soviet bloc. From 1950 through 1989, the plant produced substantial quantities of uranium materials. In 1982, it began producing reactor-grade enriched uranium in uranium dioxide form. Uranium production continued until 1989, when the plant ceased processing uranium amid the political and economic changes preceding the restoration of Estonian independence. The facility also developed a non-uranium materials business. In 1970, it began processing loparite ore from the Kola Peninsula to produce tantalum and niobium, and it later added rare-earth oxide extraction. These activities became the foundation of the post-Soviet company. In 1990, the enterprise was renamed Silmet and reorganized as a state-owned joint-stock company. It was privatized in 1997 and subsequently passed through several ownership arrangements, including participation by Austrian Treibacher Industrie AG and Zimal SA. Molycorp acquired a 90 percent stake in Silmet in April 2011 for a reported US$89 million and purchased the remaining shares later that year. After Molycorp entered bankruptcy proceedings in 2015, Silmet became part of Neo Performance Materials. The Estonian operation adopted the name NPM Silmet AS in 2016. Its facilities include metallurgical, rare-metal and rare-earth-metal factories. In 2019, NPM Silmet OÜ was recognized as the best enterprise in Ida-Viru County and as the best enterprise in Estonia’s chemical industry. The company’s industrial identity today is therefore the result of a long transition from oil shale and uranium processing to specialized rare-metal and rare-earth materials production.
History
Silmet’s industrial history begins in 1926, when the Swedish-Norwegian Eestimaa Õlikonsortsium was formed to build an oil-shale extraction and processing plant at Sillamäe. A tunnel oven was completed in 1928, but the Great Depression forced production to stop in 1930. The reorganized Baltic Oil Company restarted operations in 1936 and added a second tunnel oven in 1938. Gasoline was the principal product of this early operation. The plant was nationalized after the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940. Its facilities suffered extensive wartime destruction. During the German occupation, the operation was placed under Baltische Öl GmbH, but much of the infrastructure was again destroyed during the war. Reconstruction began after Soviet forces re-established control in 1944. In 1945, the Glavgastopprom Oil Shale Processing Plant was created at the site, and in 1946 the Soviet government established Kombinat No. 7, a diversified enterprise for mining and processing Dictyonema argillite. From 1946 to 1952, the Sillamäe plant extracted uranium oxide from local Dictyonema argillite. It subsequently processed richer uranium ores imported from mines in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The enterprise changed names and code designations several times during the Soviet period, including Factory No. 7, Enterprise P.O.B. P-6685, Sillamäe Metallurgical Plant and Sillamäe Chemical Metallurgical Production Association. Uranium production expanded substantially, and from 1982 the plant produced reactor-grade enriched uranium in uranium dioxide form. Uranium processing ended in 1989. Historical accounts attribute approximately 98,681 tonnes of uranium production to the plant during 1950–1989, including approximately 1,354.7 tonnes of enriched uranium. The site diversified into rare metals in 1970, when it began processing loparite ore from the Kola Peninsula to produce tantalum and niobium. Rare-earth oxide extraction was added later. These capabilities became central to the company after the end of uranium production. In 1990, the enterprise was renamed Silmet and reorganized as a state-owned joint-stock company. Privatization followed in 1997. Ownership then changed several times: former Estonian prime minister Tiit Vähi gained control after privatization; Treibacher Industrie AG became a minority shareholder in 2002; and Zimal SA acquired a controlling stake in 2005 before Vähi bought it back in 2010. Molycorp acquired 90 percent of Silmet in April 2011 for US$89 million and acquired the remaining shares in October of that year. Molycorp’s bankruptcy in 2015 led to a further ownership transition, with Neo Performance Materials becoming the new owner. The company was renamed NPM Silmet AS in September 2016. Its industrial complex is described as comprising metallurgical, rare-metal and rare-earth-metal factories. In 2019, NPM Silmet OÜ received regional and national recognition in Estonia’s chemical-industry and enterprise awards. The company’s historical trajectory thus runs from oil shale, through Soviet uranium production, to specialized processing of niobium, tantalum and rare-earth materials.
- 2019
Industry and regional recognition
[1]NPM Silmet OÜ was recognized as the best enterprise in Ida-Viru County and the best enterprise in Estonia’s chemical industry.
- 2016
Renamed NPM Silmet
[2]The company adopted the NPM Silmet name within the Neo Performance Materials group.
- 2015
Ownership transfers to Neo Performance Materials
[1]Neo Performance Materials became the owner after Molycorp filed for bankruptcy.
- 2011
Molycorp acquisition completed
[1]Molycorp acquired a 90 percent stake in April and the remaining 10 percent in October.
- 1997
Privatization
[1]Silmet was privatized after the restoration of Estonia’s independent economic system.
- 1990
Company renamed Silmet
[1]The enterprise was renamed Silmet and reorganized as a state-owned joint-stock company.
- 1989
Uranium processing ends
[1]The plant stopped processing uranium as Estonia and the Soviet Union entered a period of major political and economic change.
- 1982
Enriched uranium production begins
[1]The Sillamäe operation began producing reactor-grade enriched uranium in uranium dioxide form.
- 1970
Tantalum and niobium processing begins
[1]The plant began processing loparite ore from the Kola Peninsula to produce tantalum and niobium.
- 1950
Large-scale uranium production period begins
[1]The plant entered the period in which it produced substantial uranium materials for Soviet nuclear applications.
Products and positioning
A specialized Estonian industrial processor serving the rare-metals and rare-earth materials supply chain.
Rare metals · 1970
Niobium materials
Silmet’s niobium activity developed from its processing of loparite ore beginning in 1970. Niobium is a specialized industrial metal used in advanced materials and alloy-related applications. The available reference material identifies niobium as one of the company’s principal products, but does not provide a detailed product catalogue or grade structure.
Rare metals · 1970
Tantalum materials
Tantalum became part of Silmet’s rare-metals portfolio when the Sillamäe plant began processing loparite ore from the Kola Peninsula. The material is produced through specialized metallurgical processing. Specific forms, grades, customers and end-use markets are not detailed in the supplied sources.
Rare-earth materials
Rare-earth metal oxides
The Sillamäe operation later expanded from niobium and tantalum into rare-earth metal oxide extraction. This line represents the company’s transition toward specialized materials processing after uranium production ended. The supplied reference does not specify individual elements, commercial names or current volumes.
Nuclear materials · 1946
Uranium materials
Historically, the plant produced uranium oxide from Dictyonema argillite and later from imported ores. From 1982 it also produced reactor-grade enriched uranium in uranium dioxide form for Soviet nuclear power and weapons-related facilities. Uranium processing ended in 1989 and is not part of the company’s current identified product portfolio.
Brand decisions
2015
Transfer to Neo Performance MaterialsM&ABackground
Molycorp filed for bankruptcy in June 2015.
Action taken
Neo Performance Materials acquired the Silmet operation.
Aftermath
The company was subsequently renamed NPM Silmet and continued operating within the Neo Performance Materials group.
2011
Molycorp acquires SilmetM&ABackground
Silmet was a privatized rare-metals processor with established tantalum, niobium and rare-earth capabilities.
Action taken
Molycorp acquired 90 percent of the company in April and the remaining 10 percent in October.
Aftermath
Silmet became a wholly owned Molycorp operation and was later transferred to Neo Performance Materials following Molycorp’s bankruptcy.
Reported acquisition price for 90 percent stake. (April 2011)
1990
Exit from uranium processing and reorganization as SilmetStrategyBackground
The end of uranium processing coincided with the political and economic transformation of Estonia and the Soviet Union.
Action taken
The enterprise stopped processing uranium, adopted the Silmet name and was reorganized as a state-owned joint-stock company.
Aftermath
The company’s post-Soviet identity increasingly centered on rare metals, tantalum, niobium and rare-earth materials.
Sources2 sources
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