From the north comes a message to cheer.
Beyond the Arctic Circle, on the outskirts of the small Swedish town of Kiruna, geologists have encountered large amounts of rare earths.
Without these minerals, neither electric cars nor wind turbines can be built, which are necessary for the transition to a climate-friendly industry.
So far, Europe has been almost completely dependent on imports from China.
The find comes at the right time in view of this geostrategic dilemma.
What can be learned from this?
The Swedes haven't just sat back and taken their chances;
nor did they pray for the raw materials.
It would be wrong to marvel at the matter as a miracle.
Rather, the case shows, firstly, what effect rising prices can have.
Natural resources cannot be created with money.
However, the offer is not rigid.
One can search for raw materials with more or less emphasis.
A sober approach to mining
In the past, new oil or gas deposits were repeatedly developed when the price justified the investment.
Exploratory drilling is also expensive.
The mining company in Kiruna would have done without them if it wasn't worth it in the event of success.
Secondly, the far north provides an example of a sober approach to mining and its effects on the environment and society.
This week, when the opposite of this can be seen in Lützerath, there is a special punch line in it.
Kiruna originated from a railway station for transporting iron ore.
15 years ago, the magistrate decided to relocate the center, including the listed buildings, to enable further expansion of the mine.
A democratic decision.
Not everyone was for it.
But nobody threw stones when the first houses were demolished.
Now mining in northern Europe is giving rise to green hopes.
Experts estimate that it will be a good decade before mining of the newly discovered rare earths really gets going.
But it wouldn't be surprising if things went a little faster in Kiruna.