The European Parliament’s rapporteur on the critical raw materials regulation, Nicola Beer (Renew Europe, German), published a first version of her report on Monday 15 May. Through about 100 amendments, she suggests further encouraging promoters of projects for the extraction, processing or recycling of strategic raw materials in the EU. She also proposes reviewing the recycling targets for these raw materials.
In her view, applications by promoters for “strategic project” status should be facilitated as much as possible to encourage them and to allow for rapid installation.
This starts with broader criteria for strategic projects. The regulation requires, for example, that a project be implemented sustainably to be eligible. The rapporteur adds that this criterion should be applied “to the extent technically feasible”.
On the other hand, the cross-border benefits of a project should not even be taken into account in its assessment, according to Beer. “Requirements for endeavours on the value chains should be kept as low as possible. Of course, cross-border benefits are desirable, but they should not be mandatory to be granted the status of Strategic Project”, she argues.
Throughout the process of applying for and granting strategic project status, the MEP suggests shortening the Commission's processing and response times and limiting the amount of information that promoters have to provide.
As for the granting of permits by Member States, they are encouraged to make a quick decision: all strategic projects, except mining, which have not received a response within the set deadline should be considered approved, according to the MEP. The European Commission’s proposal included such an element, but it only concerned projects for the processing and recycling of strategic raw materials.
Finally, Ms Beer proposes a whole series of amendments to ensure that companies have medium-term visibility, for example, on the list of raw materials considered strategic.
Increased recycling targets
The increased ambition of the regulation is also reflected in its objectives, according to the rapporteur. She therefore proposes that recycling capacity be increased by 7.5% for each strategic raw material, in addition to the overall 15% recycling target proposed by the Commission. This would, in her view, better take into account the current recycling rates of certain raw materials, which vary widely.
The targets for the extraction (10%) and processing (40%) of strategic raw materials, on the other hand, remain unchanged in Nicola Beer's report.
See the draft report: https://aeur.eu/f/6wp (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)