For decades, Europe built its economic identity on a simple formula: innovation, regulation, high-value manufacturing, and environmental leadership. Advanced engineering, precision design, and ambitious climate policies defined the continent’s industrial prowess. Yet today, a structural vulnerability threatens this model: Europe does not control the critical raw materials (CRMs) essential to realize its technological innovations.
Minerals as the Bottleneck of Europe’s Industrial Power
Europe possesses world-class technological capabilities. Its automotive, aerospace, and energy sectors are highly advanced, and research institutions remain globally respected. Yet none of these advantages guarantees industrial success in an era where minerals—not software—dictate competitiveness. Lithium, nickel, cobalt, rare earths, graphite, copper, magnesium, tungsten, gallium, and germanium are the gatekeepers of industrial production, and Europe depends overwhelmingly on external suppliers for nearly all of them.
The shift from fossil fuels to mineral-driven technologies exposes a strategic fragility. Unlike oil and gas, which are widely traded with multiple supply options, CRMs are geographically concentrated, expensive to refine, and embedded in geopolitical competition. Cobalt flows from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, graphite processing is concentrated in China, nickel intermediates come mainly from Indonesia, rare-earth separation is dominated by Chinese facilities, and lithium refining is highly centralized. Europe’s industrial ambitions cannot ignore these supply-chain realities.
Automotive, Renewable Energy, and Semiconductors: Frontlines of Dependency
Europe’s automotive sector illustrates the stakes. Electric vehicle batteries require lithium, nickel, manganese, cobalt, and graphite. Motors rely on rare-earth magnets, while charging networks demand copper. Asian competitors—particularly China, Korea, and Japan—benefit from vertically integrated supply chains and long-standing mineral partnerships, giving them structural cost advantages. European automakers face volatile prices, uncertain supply, and policy risks, threatening competitiveness despite superior engineering.
Renewable energy infrastructure is similarly exposed. Wind turbines rely on rare-earth magnets, solar panels on silver and polysilicon, and grid expansion demands unprecedented copper volumes. Green hydrogen systems depend on platinum, iridium, and specialized catalysts. Even Europe’s semiconductor ambitions are constrained: future chips require gallium, germanium, tungsten, high-purity silicon, and rare gases. Without a secure mineral strategy, Europe’s digital industrial policy cannot fully succeed.
Redefining Industrial Strategy Around Materials
Europe’s industrial ambitions are growing while mineral vulnerabilities deepen. To address this, minerals must become the foundation of industrial planning, integrating mining, processing, recycling, and mineral diplomacy into Europe’s economic model.
Domestic mining is crucial. Europe has lithium in Portugal, Spain, Czechia, and Germany; nickel in Finland; rare earths in Sweden; copper in the Balkans; and cobalt in Scandinavia. Exploiting these resources requires faster permitting, clear governance, and targeted public investment. Without domestic extraction, industrial sovereignty is unattainable.
Processing capacity is equally vital. Even with mineral deposits, a lack of refining facilities forces reliance on external actors, especially China. Political will, infrastructure, and energy are needed to secure supply chains.
Financial strategy must evolve. Mining and processing projects demand long-term capital. Public guarantees, strategic funds, and offtake agreements are essential to attract investment and reduce risk.
Minerals: The Foundation of Europe’s Industrial Sovereignty
The green transition is not merely a technological challenge—it is a mineral challenge. Europe’s ability to innovate depends on access to the raw materials that make that innovation tangible. Without a minerals-first industrial strategy, European competitiveness is at risk, industrial growth will stall, and ambitious climate goals may remain unattainable. Securing CRMs is no longer optional—it is the defining prerequisite for Europe’s industrial future.
