Nowadays, a wide range of key technologies across all industries, from chips to batteries, medical imaging to tanks, rely on the unique physical properties of some specific critical raw materials (CRMs). Demand for CRMs is projected to skyrocket in the coming years. However, as the transition to 'net-zero' and the digital age is particularly materials-intensive, it remains uncertain whether supply will keep up with the expected needs. The EU's ambition to become a climate-neutral economy by 2050, and its ability to sustain the green and digital transitions and achieve strategic autonomy, all rely heavily on reliable, secure and resilient access to CRMs.

Policy podcast : Securing Europe's supply of critical raw materials

EP Plenary session - Framework for ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials

ITRE - Vote on establishing a framework for ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials

EP Plenary Session - A European strategy for critical raw materials

This strategy will help the EU shift to a climate-neutral, circular economy where products are designed to be more durable, reusable, repairable, recyclable and energy-efficient. It aims to ensure that the textile industry recovers from the COVID-19 crisis in a sustainable way by making it more competitive, applying circular economy principles to production, products, consumption, waste management and secondary raw materials, directing investment, research and innovation. This infoclip illustrates the Circular economy: sustainable textile strategy with an organization that operates a used clothing collection service to create new and unique piece of clothes and with a leather goods workshop creating bags with recycled tarpaulin

Infoclip: Circular economy: sustainable textile strategy

The pandemic has highlighted the risk involved, including for the EU, in relying heavily on external suppliers. The European Parliament supports the initiative to boost all the elements of critical raw material's value chains to ensure the security of supply and weaken unwanted dependencies. This infoclip illustrates port activities, loading containers, inland navigation, cars production lines and buildings construction.

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