The European Commission has selected 47 strategic projects under the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) to strengthen and diversify access to essential raw materials across the EU. The projects, spanning 13 member states, focus on various stages of the raw materials supply chain, including extraction, processing, recycling, and substitution, with a strong emphasis on battery production.
According to the Commission, 25 of the selected projects involve raw material extraction, 24 focus on processing, ten on recycling, and two on material substitution. The initiative covers 14 of the 17 strategic raw materials listed in the CRMA, including lithium (22 projects), nickel (12), cobalt (10), manganese (7), and graphite (11), all of which are crucial for battery manufacturing.
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“These projects will ensure that the EU can fully meet its extraction, processing, and recycling 2030 benchmarks for lithium and cobalt, while making substantial progress for graphite, nickel, and manganese,” the Commission stated.
The 47 projects, representing a total investment of €22.5 billion, will benefit from streamlined approval processes and enhanced access to funding. The Commission has pledged to cap permit-granting processes at 27 months for extraction projects and 15 months for other initiatives, significantly reducing current authorization timelines, which can take up to a decade.
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“Raw materials are at the very beginning of our strategically most important supply chains. They are also essential for the decarbonization of our continent,” said Stéphane Séjourné, European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services. “But Europe is currently dependent on third countries for many of the raw materials it needs most. We need to increase our own production, diversify our external supply, and build up stocks.”
Among the selected projects, three are based in Germany: Vulcan Energy’s geothermal lithium extraction, PCC Thorion GmbH’s ProHiPerSi project for graphite substitution in batteries, and Rock Tech Lithium’s lithium hydroxide converter in Guben. The Commission is also reviewing 46 project applications from non-EU countries, with decisions on their selection expected at a later stage.