The supply of raw materials at competitive prices is defined as being of critical importance to world industry, as their use, particularly in higher-technology manufacturing sectors, is irreplaceable and of strategic importance.An initial list of these raw materials included 41 elements or groups of elements, among which the following fourteen were considered to be at higher risk of supply: antimony, beryllium, cobalt, fluorspar, gallium, germanium, graphite, indium, magnesium, niobium, platinum group metals (PGM = Platinum Group Metals), rare-earth elements, tantalum, and tungsten. As of 2020, hafnium, barite, bauxite, bismuth will be added to this list, borates, carbon coke, phosphorus, phosphates, natural rubber, natural graphite, lithium, scandium, silicon metal, strontium, titanium, and vanadium. Access to the above resources is a strategic security issue. Within this framework, it becomes of priority importance for the world economy to adopt a new industrial strategy aimed at strengthening the strategic autonomy of individual states since the transition of the economy and production system to climate neutrality could present a real risk of replacing today's dependence on fossil fuels with dependence on other raw materials. Technological progress and quality of life are intimately connected and also depend on access to an increasing number of these raw materials. Strategic autonomy in these areas will therefore not be possible without diversified and transparent access to global commodity markets.
