The bloc pledges millions in funding under the Global Gateway initiative.
The European Union has taken two significant steps to diversify its raw material supply. On Thursday, the EU signed agreements with Kazakhstan under the Global Gateway initiative, which also encompass the raw materials sector. Global Gateway is the EU’s geopolitical investment strategy aimed at supporting worldwide infrastructure projects with a total budget of €300 billion by 2027. As part of efforts to expand cooperation on critical raw materials, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development pledged a €3 million investment on Thursday.
This funding aims to promote advanced extraction technologies and sustainable standards, said Jozef Síkela, EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, in an interview with the Astana Times. He conducted negotiations on-site with Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Murat Nurtleu.
Kazakhstan and the EU have been linked by a raw materials partnership since late 2022 (we reported). The Central Asian nation reports that it produces 18 of the 34 raw materials classified as critical by the EU and plans to scale up the extraction of additional resources such as rare earth elements.
Platinum Group Metals: EU-South Africa Agreement to Boost Local Value Creation
Also on Thursday, the eighth EU-South Africa summit took place in Cape Town. High-ranking officials in attendance included European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa, and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. The leaders agreed to strengthen their strategic partnership, which will include Global Gateway investments amounting to €4.7 billion. According to von der Leyen, most of this funding will support clean energy initiatives in South Africa, a country still heavily reliant on coal power.
The summit also saw the establishment of closer cooperation on critical raw materials. South Africa holds the world’s largest reserves of platinum group metals and is the leading supplier globally. These resources are crucial for producing green hydrogen, which is expected to play a key role in making heavy transport and parts of the industry more environmentally friendly. To enhance local value creation in the raw materials and hydrogen sectors while facilitating investment for European companies, the EU and South Africa are working towards a trade agreement.
Photo: Leung Cho Pan via Canva