About the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRM Act):

• Critical raw materials (CRMs) are raw materials of high economic importance for the EU, with a high risk of supply disruption due to their concentration of sources and lack of good, affordable substitutes.
• The CRM Act identifies a list of 30 critical raw materials, including lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earths, and magnesium.
• Objectives of the Act:
  • Increase and diversify the EU’s CRMs supply;
  • Strengthen circularity, including recycling;
  • Support research and innovation on resource efficiency and the development of substitutes;
• Setting benchmarks by 2030 for domestic capacities: The Act sets these benchmarks along the strategic raw materials value chain and for the diversification of EU supplies
  • at least 10% of the EU’s annual consumption for extraction;
  • at least 40% of the EU’s annual consumption for processing;
  • at least 15% of the EU’s annual consumption for recycling;
  • no more than 65% of the EU’s annual consumption from a single third country;
• The Act will reduce the administrative burden, streamlining permitting procedures for critical raw materials projects in the EU.
• To ensure supply chain resilience, the Act creates CRMs for supply chain monitoring and stress-testing, coordinates strategic stocks and sets risk preparedness obligations on large companies producing strategic technologies.
• In addition to a list of CRMs for the whole EU economy, it lists strategic raw materials, which are those most crucial for strategic technologies used for green, digital, defence and space applications.