Magnesium plays a crucial role in modern life, from environmental applications and construction materials to sports and nutrition supplements. Yet, most magnesium today comes from energy-intensive processes that release large amounts of carbon dioxide (CO₂).
As the MareMag CEO Fabrizio Vicari and the chief technical officer Giulio D’Arpa explain, the initiative brings years of academic and industrial research “to the market through a new way of producing magnesium in Europe. One that needs to be sustainable because of climate change. We cannot afford to emit additional CO₂ into the atmosphere.
Currently, most magnesium hydroxide available on the market is made from magnesite, a rock that must be mined and heated at high temperatures through a process called calcination. This step not only consumes large amounts of fossil fuel but also releases one mole of CO₂ for every mole of magnesium hydroxide produced. In contrast, magnesium can also be extracted from seawater, though this route often results in impurities due to calcium content.
Unlike conventional production methods that rely on mining and fossil fuels, MareMag LIFE takes a cleaner, circular approach. It uses renewable energy and an ingenious source of material: bittern, the liquid left after table salt production in coastal saltworks. Because saltworks remove calcium before producing salt, the resulting bittern yields a purer magnesium hydroxide while also reusing a byproduct of the salt industry, turning waste into value.
This circular approach avoids mining and reduces greenhouse gas emissions, making magnesium production cleaner and more sustainable.
Operating within saltworks brings additional challenges. Many are located in protected coastal areas, meaning any industrial activity must meet strict environmental standards. “It isn’t possible to plan any productive process there without very high sustainability standards,” Vicari notes. “That’s why we applied to the LIFE Programme, to fully align with its goals and with the European Commission’s environmental vision.”
C2M support: where lab meets the market
The MareMag LIFE team also benefited from C2M support, the initiative under the LIFE framework, which helps environmental and climate projects move from piloting and demonstration of their solutions to commercialisation.
Vicari describes it as transformative: “It’s fascinating how the close-to-market support has given us a view similar to the one we have in technology development, but in the field of business development. We learned to test our market hypotheses, talk with saltworks, verify availability and prices, and check real customer interest.”
The process led to concrete results, namely letters of intent and quotation requests from potential buyers, strengthening the project’s business plan and investment readiness.
What’s next for MareMag LIFE?
The team is now refining its techno-economic model, which combines technical and financial data to assess performance, and preparing to present its business plan to investors.
“Our goal is to scale up by two orders of magnitude in a few years”, Vicari says. “A detailed business plan is a key tool to attract investment and speed up our growth.”
When asked if he would recommend C2M support to others, his answer is clear: “Absolutely. Real environmental impact happens only when we reach the market. The close-to-market service is essential to help projects like ours complete their journey from the lab to real-world application.”
Learn more about the project - which covers a wide range of topics, including circular economy and value chains, chemicals, industrial risks and hazardous substances, pollution reduction, waste recycling, energy efficiency and waste valorisation - in our project fiche.
The MareMag LIFE project supports key EU environmental and circular economy policy areas, including the Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 on industrial emissions and the new Circular Economy Action Plan for a cleaner and more competitive Europe of 11 March 2020.
How LIFE helps close-to-market projects
The LIFE close-to-market initiative supports LIFE beneficiaries in bringing their innovative green solutions into the market. The projects gain access to a dedicated support team with extensive experience, offering insights on business coaching, advisory on business strategy development, pitching presentation guidance and expert connections, among other activities.
Looking for support to develop your cleantech solution and bring it to the market? Check out the LIFE Close-to-market webpage.
Details
- Publication date
- 11 November 2025
- Author
- European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency
