Urso: “A new phase is underway for the definition of European industrial policy”
The trilateral meeting between the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy, Adolfo, was held in Berlin bearthe German Minister of Economy and Climate Action, Robert Habeck and the French Minister of Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty Bruno The mayor for a discussion on perspectives and solutions to achieve security of raw material supply (CRM).
Representatives of the industrial sector of the three countries were also present at the meeting.
On the sidelines of the meeting, Urso declared: “With the meeting in Berlin, a new phase begins in the definition of European industrial policy which will allow us to face the challenges of the dual ecological and digital transition, in order to guarantee the strategic autonomy of the EU. Italy, Germany and France represent a significant part of the Union economy and have shared value chains in many sectors. We represent one of the great global economic engines. Together, with our values, we can determine the future of the common European home“. German Minister Habeck commented: “We want to work together to make the supply of raw materials for our industries more sustainable and diversified, to implement economic security measures more effectively. To this end, we should cooperate more closely in the fields of raw material extraction and processing and jointly advance a circular economy model.”. French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire underlined the great opportunity for cooperation between the three European countries: “We cannot guarantee the double ecological and digital transformation if we cannot help our companies access the raw materials they badly need. Whilst the CRM Act is a very important first step, our meeting today will provide us with an opportunity to discuss between Governments, as well as industry representatives on how to move forward. It is very important to define concrete actions on strategic projects and joint support, discussing issues such as the realization of shared stocks and joint purchasing. I am very confident that our cooperation will pave the way for a green and resilient Europe“.
The series of crises that Europe has gone through since 2020 has shown the urgent need to rethink the EU’s position in global value chains, especially for critical minerals and metals (lithium, nickel, rare earth elements, gallium, tungsten…) on which we depend to build everything from photovoltaic cells to wind turbines and electronic equipment. The green and digital transition will lead to an exponential demand for these materials; while the low supply will intensify global competition. That is why the critical subjects have been listed within the six priority sectors to reduce the EU’s strategic dependencies, as developed in the Versailles Agenda in 2022.
During the meeting, ministers Habeck, Urso and Le Maire discussed future challenges. Germany, Italy and France have agreed to to coordinate the proposals made in international fora, such as the G7 working groups and to agree common positions on the EU Critical Raw Materials Act for further Europe’s negotiations.
As for the CRMA, the three countries call for a speedy conclusion of the negotiations within the Council and with the European Parliament, while achieving an ambitious result. In particular, Germany, Italy and France are committed to:
Setting extraction, processing and recycling targets for Strategic Raw Materials Strengthening measures to promote the reuse and recycling of Strategic Raw Materials (SRM)/Critical Raw Materials (CRM) in Europe Ambitious Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria ) The extension of the CRM/SRM lists, in particular to include aluminum.
In order to secure theentire supply chain, from extraction to transformation and recycling, the three Ministers agreed to intensify their collaboration at the format level, sharing data and supporting criteria (with a strong promotion of environmental, social and governance standards) for joint investments in strategic projects . To strengthen their cooperation, Italy, France and Germany have decided to create a working group with experts from their respective administrations, in charge of following these initiatives and ensuring their correct implementation. This meeting is the first in a series of trilateral meetings aimed at strengthening the cooperation of Germany, France and Italy in key economic areas. The next trilateral meeting will be held in Italy in October.