In light of increasing demand and shifting geopolitical realities, the EU is intensifying efforts to diversify its sources of critical raw materials (CRM). With its considerable legacy of industrial waste and old mine tailings, Western Balkans represent a promising avenue for the EU to access CRMs. As mining projects struggle to obtain the social license to operate, the recovery of CRMs from secondary sources through the rehabilitation of old industrial sites presents an attractive alternative to generate sustainable and shared economic value as well as significant environmental benefits.
The first objective of this project will be to bring the region’s raw material potential to the attention of the European Commission and the Brussels-based stakeholder community. A policy brief will be published in the early stages of the project to highlight evidence about the region’s potential from existing assessments and to outline policy options for supporting the development of regional raw material value chains. The second objective will be to initiate a structured dialogue between Brussels-based stakeholders and actors from the Western Balkans with the goal of identifying pathways toward a win-win partnership on raw materials. This objective will be supported by two events organised in Brussels and a series of targeted bilateral consultations with Brussels-based stakeholders.
