At its March plenary session, the European Economic and Social Committee adopted an opinion which proposes to support investment in the exploration and extraction of critical raw materials and the use of secondary materials from waste, as this is essential to the green transition in the EU.

In September 2020, the European Commission adopted its Action Plan on Critical Raw Materials, with the aim of reducing dependency on primary critical raw materials and strengthening domestic sourcing of raw materials in the EU. The opinion adopted by the EESC welcomes this approach, as it "fully supports the green transition and considers the extraction of raw materials necessary for the deployment of green technologies a fundamental step".

However, in its opinion the EESC calls for additional measures to make this approach possible, as exploration and extraction are high-risk activities. The rapporteur, Dumitru Fornea, stressed this view: "Incentivising both primary and secondary sourcing is essential, and so we need to assist investment in the extraction sector and accelerate the analysis of waste potentially containing valuable materials."

The co-rapporteur, Michal Pintér, explained that this support may take a variety of forms: "We need to assist investment through loan guarantees, depreciation regimes and state aid, but also by developing a streamlined authorisation process for mining activities," he said.

The opinion also stresses the importance of broadening the definition of critical raw materials, which are traditionally understood as materials coming from the mining sector. In the EESC's view, this is too narrow and limits the growth of green energies, as wood-based materials can be efficiently used in many more applications than in the past.

The raw materials sector has huge economic potential. It provides about 350 000 jobs within the EU and more than 30 million jobs in downstream manufacturing industries that depend on reliable and unhindered access to mineral raw materials. The OECD forecasts that global material use will double by 2060, and metal use in particular is expected to grow by 150%. This is very likely to increase pressure on the planet's resources and jeopardise gains in global wellbeing.

Taking this into account, the opinion emphasises the importance of integrating new dimensions into the methodology used for establishing a list of critical minerals. The EESC considers that the European Commission should take into consideration "the needs and interests of the people and the economies in the countries from which raw materials are to be exported to Europe". Appropriate criteria to check whether the global supply chains for these types of raw materials comply with ethical principles should therefore be defined . (ks)