TELF AG examines the level of progress of the European targets related to CRMA

Supply, processing, and recycling of key resources

With the launch of the Critical Raw Materials Act, approved in May 2024, the European Union has made public the list of raw materials that it considers strategic for its economic and energy development. It also sets non-binding objectives to be achieved by 2030. Among these is the ambitious target of notably increasing European sourcing capacity, up to meeting 10% of the European demand for critical minerals with resources sourced in the territory of the European Union. Another objective is linked to the processing of these resources, which, according to the act, should represent 40% of the entire demand at the community level, with the remaining 25% entrusted to recycling practices.

But what is the state of progress of these ambitious strategic goals just over five months after the formal approval of the act? A recent analysis by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence has offered the valuable opportunity to measure the levels of increase in European sourcing capacity about the objectives set by the act, offering a very interesting overview of the current state of the European sourcing industry.

According to the analysis, only nickel sourcing capacity could have any chance of reaching the objectives set for 2030. By that year, the quantity of nickel sourced in Europe could prove to be even higher than the objective contained in the act, quantified at around 40 thousand tonnes of this precious resource (useful in the production of batteries for electric vehicles and to improve the performance of some particular alloys). According to the analysis, in particular, the current levels of graphite supply would be far from reaching the pre-established goal due to the total absence of a supply of manganese ore or coke sourced in Europe (coke represents the precursor of synthetic graphite). By 2030, according to estimates by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, the European Union could supply around 16,000 tonnes of graphite flake, compared to a target of around 45,000 tonnes.

Objectives related to processing

Lithium is another resource directly involved in the dynamics of the energy transition, mainly due to its applications related to the automotive and battery sectors. The analysis forecasts a European supply of around 29,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent by 2030, lower than the target of 46,000 tonnes for this resource. Some of the highest percentages have to do with the objectives related to processing these resources. The European Union countries could, in fact, be able to process 76% of its nickel needs and 51% of its cobalt needs, with slightly lower percentages for lithium and manganese (25% and 36%, respectively). Furthermore, according to estimates, the European Union will be able to recycle approximately 25% of its nickel needs, 26% of cobalt, and 22% of lithium, in addition to 14% of manganese. All the resources cited in the Benchmark Mineral Intelligence analysis share an industrial application of great importance at this historical juncture: rechargeable batteries. These devices can be used in electronics, energy storage, and the electric vehicle sector.