EU votes to adopt the CRM Act
On 14th September the European Parliament voted by an overwhelming majority to adopt the Critical Raw Materials Act. The amended act adds aluminium to the list of strategic raw materials and incorporates strategic secondary raw materials (transformed waste), as well as adopting new environmental and social criteria for strategic projects that qualify for EU support. The European Commission has six months since the Act’s adoption to submit a list of secondary raw materials.
Notably the Act includes the target by 2030 for the EU to increase by 10% vs 2020-2022 baseline the volume of recycling capacity for each strategic raw material “to at least collect, sort and process 45% of each strategic raw material contained in the Union’s waste taking into account technical and economic feasibility”.
The EU recycling lobby EuRIC has objected to the last-minute addition of strategic waste, arguing that this lacked evidence and that steel faces no supply risks in the EU. “Let’s prioritise sustainability and climate-neutrality in steel production by increasing recycled content, ensuring precision, rather than dilution of the very purpose of the CRM Act”, said Emmanuel Katrakis, EuRIC Secretary General.
The European Parliament will now enter in negotiations with the next, Spanish, EU Presidency to reach agreement on the CRM Act coming into force.
REE concentrates and curbs
In late September, China issued this year’s second batch of rare earth mining and refining quota, keeping mining at 120kt. However it has reduced the allocation of ionic clays vs hard rock from 9% in H1 to 7% in H2 2023, thereby lowering the share of heavy rare earths (HREE), notes Critical materials consultancy Project Blue. It also weight the refining quota towards China Northern Rare Earth Group (CNRE).
And the consolidation of China’s rare earth mining continues apace, with Xiamen Tungsten and China Rare Earth Group (CREG) forming a joint venture that gives CREG majority control of their combined REE mining and refining in Fujian province. State conglomerate CREG now controls a third of China’s REE mining and refining quota.
Meanwhile Malaysia, home to estimated 30,000t of rare earth resources, will develop a policy to ban exports of rare earth concentrates, to boost domestic processing, prime minister Anwar Ibrahim announced in September. such ban is unlikely to affect the country’s main REE producer Lynas, which processes Australian concentrates at its plant in Malaysia, but could curb concentrate export to China, Project Blue says.
UK blows hot and cold on net zero
The UK government’s decision to push back the ban on sales of new diesel and petrol cars from 2030 to 2035 prompted concern , despite bringing the target in line with the EU. There was a more positive reaction from the car makers at the new Net Zero Mandate unveiled in the last days of September that requires 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in the UK to be zero emission by 2030 and 100% by 2035.
China issues first gallium, germanium licenses
On 21 September, China issued the first licenses for gallium and germanium products exports since their introduction. GaAs manufacturers FCM and AXT were among those to receive licenses, the MMTA understands. In this issue of the Crucible, Argus Media reports on Europe’s reaction to China’s export licensing.
