Critical raw materials (CRMs) are economically and strategically important for the European economy but have a high risk associated with their supply. In many instances, CRM primary extraction is limited to a few locations outside of Europe. To achieve a transition toward a decarbonised world, secondary raw materials (SRMs) need to play an increasing role and help to diversify the supply sources of CRMs.

FutuRaM, a Horizon Europe funded project, is establishing a methodology, reporting structure, and guidance to improve the raw materials knowledge base up to 2050. It will integrate SRM and CRM data to model the current stocks and flows, and further develop, demonstrate and align SRM recovery projects with the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) for Resources to enable the commercial exploitation of SRMs and CRMs by manufacturers, recyclers, and investors. FutuRaM will focus on six waste streams: batteries; electrical and electronic equipment; vehicles; mining; slags and ashes; and construction and demolition. 

Response to the Call for Evidence Regarding the Proposed Critical Raw Materials Act

The European Commission has announced that the EU must significantly increase and diversify the supply of CRMs, strengthen circularity and support research and innovation. 

Responding to this call, the consortium outlined how FutuRaM will play a key role in ensuring a secure supply of secondary and critical raw materials in Europe. The project will contribute to the mapping of the potential supply of secondary CRMs from EU stock and wastes. Furthermore, FutuRaM will promote the use of the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) to decrease the risk of projects and protect investments. 

Finally, the consortium called on the Commission to consider establishing CRM recovery standards, designed by CEWASTE, a Horizon 2020 project, legally binding as well as to deploy the CEWASTE certification system.  

FutuRaM Case Studies in Sweden and Finland

FutuRaM will develop and test the UNFC methodology in 19 case studies across the six FutuRaM waste streams in partnership with industry stakeholders and through consultation and engagement with other relevant stakeholders. The first of these case studies, focussing on mining waste have been taking place in Sweden and Finland.

The first mine tailings explorations took place in the last week of September 2022. A team from Boliden, SGU and Ludwig-Maximilians Universität went to Northern Sweden to conduct tailings exploration in two closed Boliden mines:

• The Laisvall mine, which was a Lead mine, operated 1938 to 2001
• The Kristineberg mine which was a Zinc, Copper, Lead, Gold, and Silver mine, operated 1940 to 1987
  
   

In August 2022, GTK visited the Finnish case site, Otanmäki, located in the municipality of Kajaani, in central Finland. Otanmäki is a closed vanadium, titanium and iron mine last active between 1952-1985. The visit was hosted by FutuRaM partner, Otanmäki Mine Oy, owner of the Otanmäki ilmenite tailings project.

Otanmäki is a pioneer in pursuing commercial extraction of tailings waste in Finland. The field investigations started in 2017, including 140 sampled auger drill holes and 21 hand-dug shallow pits, resource modelling, moreover, lab- and pilot-scale beneficiation tests at GTK Mintec. The prefeasibility study of the project is in the final phase, aiming to start the ilmenite production by 2025. The current interim tailings resource is 9.8 Mt at 7.9 % TiO₂ which is bridged to UNFC E2;F2;G2.

Raw Materials Week

Late last year, FutuRaM partners headed to Brussels to present the project at the annual EU Raw Materials Week. The FutuRaM event was organised to engage with important stakeholders and collect valuable feedback on the project and its goal of applying and further developing the UNFC methodology for SRMs. Soraya Heuss-Aßbichler from University of Munich (LMU) led the discussion about the application of UNFC on resources to secondary raw materials and outlined the case studies that would be undertaken. Amongst other things, participants provided valuable feedback on which UNFC criteria they find most challenging in extraction or production of valuable minerals or materials, and which classification system is most relevant to their work. 

This was the first of many consultations that will be held during the project. If you would like to be part of these discussion and provide your input to the project, please register to be part of our stakeholder network. 

EU - Latin America Convention on Raw Materials 2022 

The 2022 EU – Latin America convention on Raw Materials took place on 3 and 4 November in Santiago de Chile. The convention was organised in the framework of the EU-Latin American Partnership on Raw Materials and brought together the mineral raw materials community including policy makers, industry, the private sector, and researchers in the EU and partner countries in Latin America (Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, Peru, Colombia and Brazil).

FutuRaM was invited as part of the EU delegation to promote knowledge exchange between the EU and partner countries. The thematic sessions covered CRMs for the energy transition, upstream and downstream battery raw material projects as well as standards and EU industrial alliances and external cooperation actions.

Second Consortium Meeting

In late November 2022, FutuRaM partners gathered in Brussels for the second meeting of the full consortium. 

The meeting focussed on addressing some fundamental questions around exploitation in the project, such as what is the market for the FutuRaM Secondary Raw Material Knowledge Base? And how do we monetise the UNFC methodology for SRMs? Creating an open-access data platform as part of a publicly funded project is a key output of FutuRaM, but generating post-project revenue is also critical for maintaining the platform and keeping the associated data up to date. This is one of the many interesting challenges the project needs to address in the next three and a half years.

Those present also took the opportunity to work together to plot the flows of our focus waste streams and the complex connections between each of them. Expertly guided by representatives from Empa, TU Berlin and UNITAR, the discussion resulted in six preliminary flowcharts showing the streams from use to waste generation to treatment and, where applicable, back to use again.

Join the FutuRaM Stakeholder Network 

A crucial part of the FutuRaM project will be the input of stakeholders from all parts of the value chain. The project needs to be in touch with interested individuals and organisations to get their input on the many facets of the work it is undertaking. If you are involved in work on any of the focus waste streams, have an interest in CRMs and SRMs, would like to share your thoughts and experiences on the application of the UNFC for Resources methodology, or work in relevant areas of data, statistics, or investment, then we would be grateful for your input. It may be that you only want to keep in touch. Either way, please sign up to our Stakeholder Network.