With the growing demand for critical minerals and the need for a skilled work force along the raw material value chain, Europe’s Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) has unveiled plans to train 100,000 people to fill skills gaps.
Backed by €10 million in funding from Horizon Europe and the Single Marker Programme, it will develop materials and training to support exploration, extraction processing and recycling of raw materials.
The academy aims to boost domestic skills, stimulate research and innovation and enhance circularity for critical raw materials. The European Raw Materials Academy is the second EU Academy to be set up under the Net-Zero Industry Act following the European Solar Academy which was launched in June 2024.
The EIT said 100,000 people have already been trained through the European Battery Alliance Academy which was set up as a blueprint for future Net-Zero Academies: technical courses developed for engineers and technicians such as Battery Management Systems and Battery Technician were the most subscribed courses, with 27,000 people completing the latter.
The academy was announced during the European Commission’s Raw Materials Week, which has been running since 2016. The latest event was the first since the European Union’s Critical Raw Materials Act entered into force in May 2024. During the negotiations MEPs called for the Act to focus on innovation to develop substitute raw materials. The legislation aims to ensure a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials for European industry through strengthened domestic extraction, processing and recycling capabilities, while also diversifying supply chains.
The Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), a global forum, also met during Raw Materials Week. Established during in 2024 the MSP Forum serves as a platform for cooperation in the area of critical raw materials. The MSP meeting focused on advancing and accelerating projects on rare earth elements, as well as identifying new responsible mining, processing and recycling projects for critical minerals.
Commenting as the European Raw Materials Academy was announced, Stéphane Séjourné, European Commission Executive Vice President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy said: “Critical raw materials are one of the foundations of our renewed industrial policy. They are essential for the decarbonation of our industry."
Séjourné added: "Europe must ensure a diversified and resilient supply chain. We need to reduce our dependencies with our domestic production meeting high quality standards and at the same time secure substantial contracts with like-minded partners all over the globe. Making Europe a leader of critical raw materials production, research and knowledge is an essential element of our competitiveness and our European sovereignty."
Further reading:
• Critical minerals: UK lags, China dominates, and parliament demands a plan
• Critical minerals: Action needed to reduce use and improve sustainability
• EU moving to secure critical materials in deals struck at COP27
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