PARIS, April 25, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - Europe must act fast to secure supplies

of crucial metals required for a green energy transition and its best bet is
to recycle, a report said Monday.

   The 27-nation EU aims to be "carbon neutral" by 2050 -- reducing
greenhouse gases to a level where the amount produced is balanced out by the
amount removed from the atmosphere.

   The bloc also wants to wean itself off dependence on Russian oil, coal and
gas.

   To this end, it is seeking not only to use less energy but also to
increase the amount of energy generated domestically from renewable
resources.

   That includes producing electric vehicles and batteries, bringing in more
wind, solar and hydrogen technologies, and creating infrastructure to
distribute this clean power.

   But expanding clean technologies will require substantial inputs of raw
metals and -- in initial stages at least -- much of this will probably have
to be imported, according to the study by Belgium's KU Leuven university.

   To bring carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions down to "net zero" by 2050, the EU
will need "35 times more lithium" than it uses today and "seven to 26 times
the amount of increasingly scarce rare earth metals", the "Metals for Clean
Energy" report said.

   The energy transition will also require far greater annual supplies of
aluminium, copper, silicon, nickel and cobalt.

   - Invest now in recycling -

   Europe could be self-sufficient for 40 to 75 percent of its clean energy
metal needs by 2050 if it invests heavily now in recycling infrastructure and
cuts red tape, said the report, commissioned by the European association of
metal producers and recyclers, Eurometaux.

   For now, the EU remains import-dependent for much of these metals and, the
study warns, "there is growing concern about the security of supply".

   "Europe needs to decide urgently how it will bridge its looming supply gap
for primary metals. Without a decisive strategy, it risks new dependencies on
unsustainable suppliers," said lead author Liesbet Gregoir.

   China and India, which rely on coal power for metal production, are set to
dominate global markets for battery metals and rare earths. Europe relies on
Russia today for aluminium, nickel and copper.

   If it is to meet climate and social goals, Europe will need to find
external suppliers with better environmental and rights records, the report
said.

   If, on the other hand, it wants to become less reliant on external
sources, Europe will need to open new mineral ore mines and refineries.

   There is "theoretical potential" for new mines to provide between five and
55 percent of the continent's raw metal needs, the report said.

   But projects need to get going now if they are to be operational in time.

   Meanwhile, investments in refining are being stymied by Europe's energy
crisis and soaring fuel prices.

   The study concludes that "recycling is Europe's best chance to improve its
long-term self-sufficiency", noting metals recycling produces significantly
less CO2 than primary metals production.

   By 2050, locally recycled metals could produce "three-quarters of Europe-
made battery cathodes, all its plans for permanent magnets production and
significant volumes of aluminium and copper".