The government’s move against the raw materials crisis: “The mines will be able to reopen by the end of the year”

ROME. There is “a high risk of procurement of critical raw materials, i.e. non-energy and non-agricultural ones” both for Europe and for our country, for this reason in Italy the mines should be “reopened” given that in our subsoil there are as many as “16 out of 34 of the critical raw materials” indicated by the EU. It was the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, who thus raised attention to the critical state of supply of critical raw materials in the Old Continent and in our territory. Illustrating the dossier during a hearing in the Senate Industry Commission, Urso noted that by now a large part of the raw materials and criticisms “arrive from China”. Therefore, no “hypocrisy” on reopening excavations and mines, also because, Urso recalled that, as happens with cobalt, after extracting it in the Congo, often “under the threat of mercenary machine guns” – therefore without protection or for workers or for the environment – it is “shipped to China” for refining and then “returned to Italy”.

industrial policy

Hence the need for a different line of “industrial policy” for our country on strategic and critical matters. A problem that fully affects Europe which has opened a debate and which on critical raw materials “depends almost exclusively on imports”, for example, buys “97% from China”. “Heavy rare earths are refined exclusively in China, 63% of the world’s cobalt is extracted in the Congo and 60% is refined in China” was the scenario illustrated by the owner of Mimit. “The risks we are exposed to are obvious” he said “The need” for critical raw materials, continued the minister in his substantial and detailed report, “is destined to increase exponentially” because these raw materials are involved in the “development and diffusion of the technologies necessary for the decarbonisation objectives ».

The theme of recycling

“The circularity of materials and the strengthening of efficiency – he also observed – can mitigate, to a certain extent, the expected increase in demand but do not solve the problem” and even if Italy “is the first in Europe in recycling” and it could even achieve “40% of needs in 2040”, it is useful “but it does not solve the problem” according to Urso. “We are good at recycling – he said – but the replacement and efficiency of materials can mitigate demand, they can mitigate the problem but not solve it”.

Mapping

The government moved “immediately” to clarify the national state of affairs and proceeded to “mapping” the critical raw materials present in our territory. “With this mapping – carried out together with the Minister of the Environment Picetto Fratin – we have verified that we possess 16 out of 34 of the critical raw materials” indicated by the EU, materials that can be used especially to produce “solar panels” but these critical raw materials “are found in mines closed by the crisis of 30 years ago due to the impact but also because there were no profit margins”, he recalled. Now these mines should be “reopened”.