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The EU secures its rare earths, 47 projects already ready

by AI | 27.Mar 2025 | Europe in brief AI

The European Commission has approved 47 strategic projects in 13 EU countries, four of which are Italian, to enhance the Union’s capabilities in strategic raw materials and to defend against dependencies on third countries, China above all.

47 rare earth extraction and processing projects and strategic metals approved by the European Commission in 13 EU countries. Source: European Commission

Brussels (ANSA) – The European Commission has approved 47 strategic projects in 13 EU countries, four of which are Italian, to strengthen the Union’s capabilities in strategic (‘critical’) raw materials and defend against dependencies on third countries, especially China.

This is the first concrete step of the ‘Critical Raw Material Act’, the regulation presented a year ago to ensure minimum EU levels by 2030 on extraction (10%), processing (40%), and recycling (25%) of the materials necessary for the “European sovereignty as an industrial power”, emphasized the vice president of the EU executive Stéphane Séjourné.

Chinese lithium cannot become the Russian gas of tomorrow – Stéphane Séjourné, vice president of the European Commission

“Decarbonization is not possible without raw materials,” he said. “There can be no defense industry without rare earths” used in radars, sonars, or targeting systems. Here today, we instead depend “100% on refined Chinese materials: we do not want to replace our dependency on fossil fuels with dependency on critical raw materials. Chinese lithium cannot become the Russian gas of tomorrow”.

The four Italian projects selected are all in recycling and are promoted by Solvay in Tuscany (platinum), by Itelyum Regeneration in Lazio (rare earths used in magnets), Portovesme in Sardinia (lithium for batteries) and Circular Material in Veneto (copper and nickel for batteries and platinum). The result “initiates a new vision of the raw materials sector in Italy, focusing on competitiveness but also on environmental, economic, and social sustainability”, said the Minister of Environment Gilberto Pichetto Fratin (March 25).