A draft version of the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act has been...

A draft version of the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act has been released and is set to be presented by the European Commission next Tuesday (14 March). No doubt good news, but we'll now have to wait for the Critical Raw Materials Board to be established before Talga is likely named as a strategic project.

https://www.euractiv.com/section/economy-jobs/news/leak-eu-commission-wants-10-of-critical-raw-materials-mined-in-europe/

"Strategic projects

The Critical Raw Materials Act also includes special treatment for projects that are deemed “strategic”. These “strategic projects” will be identified by the European Commission together with a European Critical Raw Materials Board that is yet to be established.

The strategic projects will benefit from a more streamlined and predictable permitting process, currently one of the main stumbling blocks for European mining projects. According to industry executives, it takes 10 years on average until a new mine starts operating.

The Critical Raw Materials Act aims at reducing the permitting time drastically.

“Member States should ensure that the permit granting process related to such projects does not exceed pre-set time limit,” the document reads.

“For Strategic Projects that involve extraction the length of the permit granting process should, considering the complexity and extent of the potential impacts involved, not exceed two years,” it continues.

These strategic projects will also receive additional financial support. The draft regulation assesses that “private investment alone is not sufficient” and states that the “effective roll-out of projects along the critical raw material value chain may require public support”.

The draft envisions that member states will fill the financial gap of these projects. “This public support may take the form of State aid,” the document reads, adding that the recent revision of the EU’s state aid rules would allow for public investments by member states in an easier fashion. "