Europe is stepping up efforts to reduce its dependence on China for critical raw materials, seeking to protect its industries from geopolitical pressure and supply disruptions.
The latest: The European Parliament approved its position on a targeted revision of the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) by 441 votes to 83, with 108 abstentions. The proposal includes a new European Critical Raw Materials Centre and stronger measures to secure strategic supplies.
- The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) have proposed a Governing Board to ensure member states are fully involved in strategic decisions.
- The measures reflect priorities repeatedly advanced by the Italian government, particularly on strategic stockpiling and restrictions on exports of recyclable materials.
What Rome says: Italy’s Minister for Enterprises and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, welcomed the vote, highlighting provisions to restrict exports of scrap and waste containing permanent magnets and establish a European centre for critical raw materials.
- “This is the right path towards achieving European strategic autonomy, to which our country is making a decisive contribution,” Urso said.
- He pointed to Italy’s bid to host the first European strategic stockpile of critical raw materials and the recent selection of five Italian projects among the 46 identified by the European Commission under the CRMA’s second call for projects.
Italy’s bid: Rome wants to establish the European critical raw materials storage centre in Porto Marghera, in the Veneto region.
- The site is connected to northeastern Italy’s logistics network, making it a potential hub for the strategic storage and management of rare earth elements.
- The project would strengthen Italy’s role in Europe’s efforts to secure critical supply chains.
How it would work: The revision introduces a proposed “conditional export control clause” allowing the European Commission to restrict exports of scrap and waste containing permanent magnets.
- The goal is to keep valuable materials within the EU, where they can be recycled and reused.
- The Commission would also be able to identify large companies using critical raw materials in products such as batteries, drones, satellites and semiconductors, and subject them to resilience obligations designed to reduce supply vulnerabilities.
The bigger picture: China, the United States and Japan are already strengthening their raw materials supply strategies. European lawmakers want the EU to develop comparable instruments.
- “While China, the United States and Japan are strengthening their supply strategies, Europe must equip itself with equally concrete instruments,” said Mariateresa Vivaldini, an ECR/Brothers of Italy member of the European Parliament.
- “The new Centre must support investment, joint purchasing, long-term agreements and strategic stockpiles, strengthening European capabilities across the entire supply chain, from extraction to processing and recycling.”
By the numbers: The Critical Raw Materials Act establishes a series of benchmarks for 2030 to strengthen Europe’s access to materials essential for the clean energy transition.
- 10%: Minimum share of the EU’s annual consumption of strategic raw materials to be extracted domestically.
- 40%: Minimum share to be processed within the EU.
- 25%: Minimum share to be met through recycling.
- 65%: Maximum share of annual EU consumption of any strategic raw material that should come from a single third country.
Why it matters: The measures are intended to reduce the risk of European industries becoming dependent on a single supplier for materials essential to clean energy technologies, advanced manufacturing and strategic sectors.
- For Italy, the push also presents an opportunity to turn Porto Marghera into a key node in Europe’s emerging critical raw materials supply chain.
