Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) dominates the global supply chains for critical raw materials (CRM) needed to produce green energy technologies, like solar modules and electric vehicle (EV) batteries. By dominating the mining, metallurgy and material science sectors, often referred to as the “three Ms”, China dominates much of the world’s clean-tech supply chains.1 Yet, while China dominates refining, it faces its own supply vulnerabilities, reflecting the complexity of global dependencies. In order to keep its lead, the PRC needs Tibet’s rich resources, including its lithium and copper. Going forward, Beijing is likely to expand mining activities on the Tibetan Plateau, displacing and disempowering the Tibetan people, polluting their rivers, land and air, with far-reaching regional and global implications.
In contrast with the PRC, the European Union (EU) is just catching up in the global CRM race. Burdened by its internal fragmentation, the bloc has struggled to manage its exposure to China. At present, the EU sources 90 percent of its solar modules from the PRC, and Europeanmanufactured solar modules are heavily reliant on components imported from the PRC.2 Overall, the bloc depends on China for 98 percent of its supply of rare earth elements (REE) and around 60 percent of its CRM.3 The geopolitical risks for Europe are clearly high. Alarmed by China’s position at the center of global supply chains, Europe has started de-risking from China.
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