Critical masses – The power of raw materials and innovative alternatives
The current situation: serious. The outlook: threatening. The EU currently classifies 34 materials as “critical raw materials”, from arsenic, which is particularly electrically conductive, to tungsten, which is valued for its high density in aviation and telecommunications technology. Half of these are defined as “strategically relevant” - they are particularly important for the development of green and digital technology or for a stable position in the areas of defense, aerospace and aviation. The electronics and electrical engineering industry, the first customer for many raw materials and a key supplier for many of these future industries, is at the heart of this issue. And is working on finding solutions.
The need for this has increased significantly in recent years. For many decades, raw material prices fluctuated again and again, but companies found ways to come to terms with this.
That is now a thing of the past. Firstly, the global hunger for raw materials is increasing because technology and digitalization are advancing ever faster. Secondly, many industrialized countries are now taking a much more critical view of the ecological and social realities surrounding the extraction of raw materials. Thirdly, competition for these resources has become tougher. More countries either want to use the raw materials for themselves - or have much stricter controls on who is allowed to use the material mined within their borders. Bolivia is a particularly striking example of this. There is so much lithium in the Bolivian Andes that it could meet global demand for decades. However, the South American country has barely managed to mine it so far. Cooperation with international investors should change this in future - although it is questionable whether Europe will benefit from this.
Another approach is to use more sustainable alternatives instead of critical raw materials. A number of research projects are trying to develop these. However, replacing A with B is not always the best solution.
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