ASI and the EU Critical Raw Material Act
Dr. Leopold von Carlowitz provides his insights into the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act and how ASI Certification and Membership can be leveraged for Strategic Project Recognition
17 December 2024
Strategic projects lie at the heart of the CRMA. These projects aim to extract, process or recycle strategic raw materials. Companies (project promoters) may apply to the European Commission to have their projects recognized as strategic and thereby receive funding benefits and enjoy streamlined and fast-track authorization procedures. One of the recognition criteria is that the project is implemented sustainably. Project promoters can use their membership in certification schemes such as ASI in support of their application for strategic project status.
The CRMA foresees that the European Commission can recognize existing certification schemes and enter them in an official register to be established. Project promoters can attest (automatic) compliance with the sustainability requirements for their project if they provide proof that the project is certified by a recognized scheme. For official recognition, schemes must meet a whole set of governance and other criteria such as transparency, fairness, business integrity, verification and auditing. The requirements of certification need to ensure environmentally sustainable practices, including risk management and impact mitigation relating to a detailed list of risk categories.
ASI is confident that it should meet all recognition requirements set by the Commission. The criteria of the ASI Performance Standard also cover all the various aspects that a strategic project must show if it is to count as sustainably implemented. These are the monitoring, prevention and minimisation of environmental and socially adverse impacts. Project implementers must use “socially responsible practices including respect for human rights, indigenous peoples and labour rights, in particular in the case of involuntary resettlement, potential for quality job creation and meaningful engagement with local communities and relevant social partners, and the use of transparent business practices with adequate compliance policies to prevent and minimise risks of adverse impacts on the proper functioning of public administration, including corruption and bribery.” The European Commission announced on its webpage that it will adopt by 24 May 2027 a single template for certification scheme owners to apply for recognition. However parallel practice on the recognition of certification schemes under the EU Regulation on Conflict Minerals suggests that it might take the European Commission a long time to develop such recognition process in respect of the CRMA.
In the meantime, project promoters can refer to their ASI membership and/or certification when making applications for strategic project status. The respective application form requests project promoters to describe the aspects related to obtaining the certification and to summarise the potential environmental and social impacts and mitigation measures of the project. In its Guide for Applicants available on the EU webpage, the Commission provides details on how to present this information. The next cut-off date for applications is foreseen to be Q1 2025.
ASI stands for global cooperation and a global level playing field. As its objective, the CRMA speaks of “secure, resilient and sustainable supply of critical raw materials”. To this end, the Act introduced various measures relating to risk management and free movement of critical raw materials and products placed on the European market “while ensuring a high level of environmental protection and sustainability, including by improving their circularity.” In other words, the promotion of sustainability in supply chains is one of the key objectives of the CRMA, one that is shared by ASI.
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