On the 16th March 2023, the European Commission announced a proposal on a comprehensive set of actions to ensure the EU's access to a secure, diversified, affordable and sustainable supply of critical raw materials. Critical raw materials are indispensable for a wide set of strategic sectors including the net zero industry, the digital industry, aerospace, and defence sectors.
While demand for critical raw materials is projected to increase drastically, Europe heavily relies on imports, often from quasi-monopolistic third country suppliers. The EU needs to mitigate the risks for supply chains related to such strategic dependencies to enhance its economic resilience, as highlighted by shortages in the aftermath of the Covid-19 and the energy crisis following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This can put at risk the EU's efforts to meet its climate and digital objectives.
The Regulation and Communication on critical raw materials adopted leverage the strengths and opportunities of the Single Market and the EU's external partnerships to diversify and enhance the resilience of EU critical raw material supply chains. The Critical Raw Materials Act also improves the EU capacity to monitor and mitigate risks of disruptions and enhances circularity and sustainability.
President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said: “This Act will bring us closer to our climate ambitions. It will significantly improve the refining, processing and recycling of critical raw materials here in Europe. Raw materials are vital for manufacturing key technologies for our twin transition – like wind power generation, hydrogen storage or batteries. And we're strengthening our cooperation with reliable trading partners globally to reduce the EU's current dependencies on just one or a few countries. It's in our mutual interest to ramp up production in a sustainable manner and at the same time ensure the highest level of diversification of supply chains for our European businesses.”
Together with the reform of the electricity market design and the Net Zero Industry Act, today's measures on critical raw materials create a conducive regulatory environment for the net-zero industries and the competitiveness of European industry, as announced in the Green Deal Industrial Plan.
The Critical Raw Materials Act will equip the EU with the tools to ensure the EU's access to a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials, mainly through:
1. Setting clear priorities for action:
In addition to an updated list of critical raw materials, the Act identifies a list of strategic raw materials, which are crucial to technologies important to Europe's green and digital ambitions and for defence and space applications, while being subject to potential supply risks in the future. The Regulation embeds both the critical and strategic raw materials lists in EU law. The Regulation sets clear benchmarks for domestic capacities along the strategic raw material supply chain and to diversify EU supply by 2030:
At least 10% of the EU's annual consumption for extraction,
At least 40% of the EU's annual consumption for processing,
At least 15% of the EU's annual consumption for recycling,
Not more than 65% of the Union's annual consumption of each strategic raw material at any relevant stage of processing from a single third country.
2. Creating secure and resilient EU critical raw materials supply chains:
The Act will reduce the administrative burden and simplify permitting procedures for critical raw materials projects in the EU. In addition, selected Strategic Projects will benefit from support for access to finance and shorter permitting timeframes (24 months for extraction permits and 12 months for processing and recycling permits). Member States will also have to develop national programmes for exploring geological resources.
3. Ensuring that the EU can mitigate supply risks:
To ensure resilience of the supply chains, the Act provides for the monitoring of critical raw materials supply chains, and the coordination of strategic raw materials stocks among Member States. Certain large companies will have to perform an audit of their strategic raw materials supply chains, comprising a company-level stress test.
4. Investing in research, innovation and skills:
The Commission will strengthen the uptake and deployment of breakthrough technologies in critical raw materials. Furthermore, the establishment of a large-scale skills partnership on critical raw materials and of a Raw Materials Academy will promote skills relevant to the workforce in critical raw materials supply chains. Externally, the Global Gateway will be used as a vehicle to assist partner countries in developing their own extraction and processing capacities, including skills development.
5. Protecting the environment by improving circularity and sustainability of critical raw materials:
Improved security and affordability of critical raw materials supplies must go hand in hand with increased efforts to mitigate any adverse impacts, both within the EU and in third countries with respect to labour rights, human rights and environmental protection. Efforts to improve sustainable development of critical raw materials value chains will also help promoting economic development in third countries and also sustainability governance, human rights, conflict-resolution and regional stability.
Member States will need to adopt and implement national measures to improve the collection of critical raw materials rich waste and ensure its recycling into secondary critical raw materials. Member States and private operators will have to investigate the potential for recovery of critical raw materials from extractive waste in current mining activities but also from historical mining waste sites. Products containing permanent magnets will need to meet circularity requirements and provide information on the recyclability and recycled content.
Diversifying the European Union's imports of critical raw materials:
The EU will never be self-sufficient in supplying such raw materials and will continue to rely on imports for a majority of its consumption. International trade is therefore essential to supporting global production and ensuring diversification of supply. The EU will need to strengthen its global engagement with reliable partners to develop and diversify investment and promote stability in international trade and strengthen legal certainty for investors. In particular, the EU will seek mutually beneficial partnerships with emerging markets and developing economies, notably in the framework of its Global Gateway strategy.
The EU will step up trade actions, including by establishing a Critical Raw Materials Club for all like-minded countries willing to strengthen global supply chains, strengthening the World Trade Organization (WTO), expanding its network of Sustainable Investment Facilitation Agreements and Free Trade Agreements and pushing harder on enforcement to combat unfair trade practices.
It will further develop Strategic partnerships: The EU will work with reliable partners to promote their own economic development in a sustainable manner through value chain creation in their own countries, while also promoting secure, resilient, affordable and sufficiently diversified value chains for the EU.
The proposed Regulation will be discussed and agreed by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union before its adoption and entry into force.
2023 年 3 月 16 日，欧盟委员会宣布了一项关于一整套行动的提案，以确保欧盟获得安全、多样化、负担得起和可持续的关键原材料供应。 关键原材料对于包括净零工业、数字工业、航空航天和国防部门在内的一系列战略部门来说是不可或缺的。
虽然对关键原材料的需求预计将急剧增加，但欧洲严重依赖进口，通常来自准垄断的第三国供应商。 欧盟需要减轻与此类战略依赖相关的供应链风险，以增强其经济弹性，Covid-19 之后的短缺和俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后的能源危机凸显了这一点。 这可能会危及欧盟实现其气候和数字经济目标的努力。
所采用的关于关键原材料的法规和沟通利用了单一市场和欧盟外部伙伴关系的优势和机会，以实现欧盟关键原材料供应链的多元化和增强弹性。 《关键原材料法》还提高了欧盟监测和减轻中断风险的能力，并增强了循环性和可持续性。
欧盟委员会主席乌尔苏拉·冯德莱恩说：“该法案将使我们更接近我们的气候目标。 它将显着改善欧洲关键原材料的精炼、加工和回收。 原材料对于制造我们双重转型的关键技术至关重要——如风力发电、储氢或电池。 我们正在加强与全球可靠贸易伙伴的合作，以减少欧盟目前对一个或几个国家的依赖。 以可持续的方式提高产量，同时确保我们欧洲企业的供应链实现最高水平的多元化，符合我们的共同利益。”
连同电力市场设计改革和净零工业法案，今天针对关键原材料的措施为净零工业和欧洲工业的竞争力创造了有利的监管环境，正如绿色交易工业计划中所宣布的那样。
《关键原材料法》将为欧盟提供工具，以确保欧盟获得关键原材料的安全和可持续供应，主要通过：
1. 设定明确的行动重点：
除了更新的关键原材料清单外，该法案还确定了一份战略原材料清单，这些原材料对欧洲绿色和数字雄心以及国防和太空应用的重要技术至关重要，同时在未来面临潜在的供应风险 . 该条例将关键和战略原材料清单纳入欧盟法律。 该条例为战略原材料供应链上的国内产能设定了明确的基准，并在 2030 年前使欧盟供应多样化：
至少 10% 的欧盟年消费量用于开采，
至少40%的欧盟年消费量用于加工，
至少15%的欧盟年消费量用于回收，
欧盟在任何相关加工阶段对每种战略原材料的年消耗量不超过来自单个第三国的 65%。
2. 建立安全且有弹性的欧盟关键原材料供应链：
该法案将减轻欧盟关键原材料项目的行政负担并简化许可程序。 此外，选定的战略项目将受益于获得融资的支持和更短的许可时间框架（提取许可为 24 个月，加工和回收许可为 12 个月）。 成员国还必须制定勘探地质资源的国家计划。
3.确保欧盟能够减轻供应风险：
为确保供应链的弹性，该法案规定了对关键原材料供应链的监控，以及成员国之间战略原材料库存的协调。 某些大公司将不得不对其战略原材料供应链进行审计，包括公司层面的压力测试。
4. 投资于研究、创新和技能：
委员会将加强关键原材料领域突破性技术的采用和部署。 此外，建立关键原材料方面的大规模技能合作伙伴关系和原材料学院将促进关键原材料供应链中与劳动力相关的技能。 在外部，全球门户将用作协助伙伴国家发展自己的提取和加工能力的工具，包括技能开发。
5. 通过提高关键原材料的循环性和可持续性来保护环境：
提高关键原材料供应的安全性和可负担性，必须同时加大力度减轻欧盟内部和第三国在劳动力方面的任何不利影响 权利、人权和环境保护。 努力改善关键原材料价值链的可持续发展也将有助于促进第三国的经济发展以及可持续性治理、人权、冲突解决和区域稳定。
成员国将需要采取和实施国家措施，以改进对富含关键原材料的废物的收集，并确保将其回收为二次关键原材料。 成员国和私人运营商将不得不调查从当前采矿活动中的采掘废料以及历史采矿废料场中回收关键原材料的潜力。 含有永磁体的产品需要满足循环要求，并提供有关可回收性和回收成分的信息。
使欧盟的关键原材料进口多样化：
欧盟在供应此类原材料方面永远不会自给自足，并将继续依赖进口来满足其大部分消费。 因此，国际贸易对于支持全球生产和确保供应多样化至关重要。 欧盟将需要加强与可靠合作伙伴的全球合作，以发展和多样化投资，促进国际贸易的稳定，并加强投资者的法律确定性。 特别是，欧盟将寻求与新兴市场和发展中经济体建立互惠互利的伙伴关系，特别是在其全球门户战略的框架内。
欧盟将加强贸易行动，包括为所有愿意加强全球供应链、加强世界贸易组织 (WTO) 的所有志同道合的国家建立关键原材料俱乐部，扩大其可持续投资便利化协议和自由贸易协定网络 加大执法力度，打击不公平的贸易行为。
它将进一步发展战略伙伴关系：欧盟将与可靠的合作伙伴合作，通过在本国创造价值链以可持续的方式促进自身经济发展，同时也为欧盟促进安全、有弹性、负担得起和充分多样化的价值链。
拟议的条例将在其通过和生效之前由欧洲议会和欧盟理事会进行讨论和同意。
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