A total of 161 projects have applied for “strategic project” status under the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act, a designation that can help developers access funding guidance and faster permitting procedures.
Projects granted the status can receive guidance on private and public funding and attract attention from a financing hub set up through the RESource Action Plan, which draws on EU funds and the European Investment Bank, the European Commission informed in a release on Monday.
The status is also expected to give potential off-takers — customers that agree to buy future production — more certainty, the statement added.
Applicants cover most of the EU’s list of “strategic raw materials” under the Critical Raw Materials Act, including 75 projects linked to the battery value chain and 21 focused on rare earth elements used in permanent magnets for technologies such as wind turbines.
The European Commission received 95 applications from within the EU and 66 from outside the bloc, including 40 from countries and overseas countries and territories where the EU has a strategic partnership on raw materials.
All applications will be assessed in depth with support from independent experts before the Commission discusses the results with EU Member States and finalises the selection.
Previous round and targets
In an earlier round launched in August 2024, 170 projects applied for strategic status and 60 were selected, the Commission said.
That first selection round resulted in 47 strategic projects in the EU and 13 projects in third countries and overseas countries and territories being designated in 2025.
The EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act entered into force on 23 May 2024 and is intended to secure supplies of materials needed by industry.
