The European Commission will consider early next year whether to add cadmium to the European Union's critical raw materials list, with the aim of encouraging production and recycling of this metal widely used in batteries, and hence potentially helping the EU economy move away from fossil fuels.
Such a listing is designed to incentivize European production of a critical raw material that is in short supply, making reducing import barriers a priority during trade negotiations, developing research and innovation projects and fostering their efficient use and recycling through the EU Circular Economy Action Plan. The list also feeds into EU policy on encouraging foreign direct investments.The Commission revises its critical raw materials list every three years, with the most list most recently published in 2017. The EU executive is currently preparing a new version to be published in 2020. And while no official documents have yet been released, Fastmarkets understands five...