Today´s society demands large amounts of metals and minerals. In Europe, we consume about a quarter of the world's raw materials but produce only three percent. We are therefore largely dependent on imports.
The European Commission has classified 30 raw materials as critical for our society and industry. These critical materials are defined according to two main criteria for each individual raw material: its economic importance for the European industry and its supply risk, that is, the risk of interruptions in the supply to Europe
In September 2022 in a keynote speech by Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič at the Raw Materials Security of Europe Conference the following were highlighted:
With more than 110 major industrial battery projects across Europe, we are well on track to achieving open strategic autonomy in this critical sector. Our Gigafactories are expected to supply 90% of batteries needed in the EU's economy by 2030.
On the other hand, the EU currently supplies only 1% of its own needs for key battery raw materials, such as lithium, cobalt and nickel.
In order to produce the expected 30 million electric vehicles by 2030, we will need 10,000 tons of permanent magnets, requiring 3,000 tons of rare earths – the vast majority of which is imported from China.
If all 11 potentially viable lithium projects in the EU become operational, they could produce some 38% of the expected lithium demand by 2030.
14 projects identified across the rare earths value chain by the European Raw Materials Alliance could meet 20% of the EU's needs by 2030, as compared to close to zero today.
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