BRUSSELS, 9th October, 2026 (WAM) — The European Commission on Friday announced the selection of 46 new strategic projects across 16 member states to strengthen supplies of critical raw materials, diversify sources and reduce dependence on external suppliers.
The projects will support the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) targets for 2030, which aim to ensure that EU capacity meets at least 10 percent of annual consumption through extraction, 40 percent through processing and 25 percent through recycling of strategic raw materials.
The projects include eight focused on extraction, 11 on processing and 19 on recycling, alongside eight integrated projects: three combining extraction and processing and five combining processing and recycling. Together, they cover 15 of the 17 strategic raw materials listed under the CRMA.
The projects will strengthen European value chains in batteries, defence and aerospace, and permanent magnets, including lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite.
The 46 projects were selected from 102 applications and will join 47 projects within the EU and 13 in non-EU countries previously selected in 2025.
The Commission plans to launch another round of applications for strategic projects in late 2026.
Source: Emirates News Agency