On 23 May 2024, the European Critical Raw Materials Act entered into force, addressing resources and rules for the sourcing of critical chemical raw materials of a strategic nature. The main objective of the act is to ensure that by 2030 European extraction, processing and recycling of raw materials meet an adequate level of demand in the European Union.
Based on the presented act, the European Commission has drawn up a list of projects for the extraction, processing, recycling and substitution of critical raw materials. The list has been consulted by the Member States’ Critical Raw Materials Board composed of Member States and the European Parliament. Following the discussions, the Commission adopted a list of 47 projects to increase the availability of raw materials and diversify the supply chain. Through these projects, the EU will be able to fully meet its 2030 lithium and cobalt mining, processing and recycling targets, while making significant progress for graphite, nickel and manganese. In addition, other strategic projects on magnesium and tungsten will contribute to the resilience of the EU’s defence industry, which relies on the use of these materials.
Total capital investment in the 47 strategic projects is expected to be €22.5 billion. The projects provide for the possibility of using simplified regulations on permits, as well as shortening the time of their issuance to 15 or 27 months (currently the issuance of permits takes up to 10 years).
At the end of the summer, the Commission will launch a new call for proposals for strategic projects on critical raw materials.
More information: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_864
Critical raw materials: https://ekotox.eu/critical-raw-materials/