EU lawmakers vote to create raw materials agency to cut reliance on China

The European Parliament has voted to strengthen the bloc’s Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), backing the creation of a dedicated EU agency and a €2 billion fund designed to reduce Europe’s dependence on foreign suppliers of minerals essential to the clean energy, defense and digital transitions.

The amendments, adopted by 470 votes to 83 with 108 abstentions, are designed to accelerate extraction, processing, recycling and substitution across the full critical raw materials value chain, with direct implications for commodity trade flows as the EU seeks to diversify away from dominant suppliers — particularly China — for inputs ranging from rare earth elements to lithium and cobalt.

“Critical raw materials have become the currency of geopolitical power. Those who control them control our industrial future, our energy transition and our security,” lead MEP Mohammed Chahim, of the Socialists and Democrats group from the Netherlands, said.

Supply security At the heart of the proposed amendments is the creation of a critical raw materials center as a self-standing EU agency, equipped with dedicated funding, clear governance and democratic accountability. The center will consolidate market intelligence, resilience planning, stockpiling coordination, joint purchasing, stakeholder engagement and financial instruments under one roof.

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