Key projects for the future of critical raw materials

This week, the European Commission has taken a decisive step in its strategy to secure the supply of critical raw materials essential for the EU's energy transition and security. On Tuesday 25 March, the selection of 47 strategic projects spread across 13 member states was announced as part of the implementation of the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA).

Goals for 2030

The initiative aims to achieve ambitious targets by 2030:

- Extracting 10% of the EU's annual consumption of critical raw materials

- Process 40% of these materials within the EU

- Recycle 25% of essential materials

These objectives aim to reduce dependence on third countries, especially China, and strengthen the European supply chain in key materials for sectors such as renewable energy, automotive and defence.

Spain: a key player in the European strategy

Spain has positioned itself as a key player in this initiative, being the country with the second highest number of projects selected, behind only France. Of the 47 projects selected, 7 will be located in Spain, representing approximately 15% of the total.

The projects are in different locations (Galicia, Extremadura, Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia) and will be responsible for the extraction, processing and recycling of four critical minerals: lithium, tungsten, nickel and copper.

Impact and benefits for Spain and the EU

The selection of these projects will not only strengthen Spain's position in the supply chain of critical raw materials, but will also contribute significantly to the EU's objectives in terms of strategic autonomy and green transition.

Stéphane Séjourné, European Commission Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy, underlined the importance of Spain in this plan: "Spain is very important in the EU plan for critical raw materials, seven of the 47 strategic projects are located there".

Next steps

The European Commission plans to open a new application process for additional strategic projects before the end of the summer. This will create more investment and development opportunities in the raw materials sector, further strengthening the EU's position in this critical area.

This initiative marks an important milestone in the EU's quest for greater autonomy in critical raw materials, with Spain playing a crucial role in this collective effort towards a more sustainable and strategically independent future.