German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for the European Union to build strategic stockpiles of critical raw materials, arguing that Europe needs stronger safeguards against supply disruptions and excessive dependence on a small number of producer countries.
Speaking at an economic conference in Berlin on Thursday, Merz said the materials underpin key industries, including battery manufacturing, electric motors and semiconductors. He also urged European countries to diversify suppliers, expand domestic processing and recycling, and strengthen the circular economy. China remains a major source of several minerals and processed materials used by European manufacturers.
Germany has eight projects on the EU list
The European Commission selected 46 additional strategic raw-material projects across 16 member states on 9 October. Eight are located in Germany, including a battery-recycling project in Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia, and a lithium project in Zinnwald, Saxony.
Projects receiving strategic status can benefit from faster permitting, support in accessing public and private finance, and closer links between suppliers and industrial customers. The EU’s 2030 benchmarks include meeting at least 10 per cent of annual consumption through domestic extraction, 40 per cent through processing within the bloc and 25 per cent through recycling.
Stockpiling remains a proposal
Merz’s remarks amount to a call for further EU action, not an announcement that a common stockpile has already been approved or established. The Commission’s 46 selected projects are a separate measure intended to increase Europe’s capacity to extract, process and recycle strategic materials.
The debate reflects a wider effort to make European supply chains more resilient as demand rises across the automotive, energy, electronics and defence sectors. The Aachen project also gives North Rhine-Westphalia a role in the region’s emerging battery-recycling and circular-economy infrastructure.
