(Courtesy Translation)
Excellencies,
I would like to thank the United Nations for convening this important discussion and for the valuable work carried out by the Panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals.
The Panel’s recommendations are particularly timely at a moment marked by growing geopolitical tensions and increasing vulnerabilities in global supply chains.
Critical minerals are indispensable for net-zero technologies, artificial intelligence, defense, the aerospace industry, and other strategic sectors. Yet today, both their extraction and, above all, their processing remain highly concentrated. For this reason, diversifying value chains is no longer an option—it is a strategic imperative.
Italy is committed to developing its national strategy on critical minerals, in line with the European and international framework. We have implemented the European Critical Raw Materials Act and updated our national mining legislation to strengthen the sector’s resilience and sustainability.
We are also reinforcing our role in European value chains through new projects focused on recycling and processing, complementing those already recognized as Strategic Projects at the European level. These initiatives reflect Italy’s commitment to investing in circularity, resource efficiency, and the closing of material loops.
We have supported these efforts with dedicated financial instruments, ranging from the National Exploration Programme to the €1 billion National Made in Italy Fund, as well as investments under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and research and innovation initiatives supported through Mission Innovation.
At the same time, we are working to establish a European storage hub and promoting international initiatives aimed at strengthening the resilience of value chains, including through cooperation with African countries and support for the Lobito Corridor.
However, the key message I wish to emphasize today is that no country can meet this challenge alone.
Strategic partnerships and international cooperation are essential pillars for ensuring sustainable, resilient, and diversified value chains. Our objective is to build mutually beneficial partnerships across the entire value chain—from extraction and processing to recycling—while keeping environmental, economic, and social sustainability at the core of our efforts.
Italy believes that strengthening multilateral cooperation is essential to ensuring diversified, secure, and standards-based access to critical minerals. Only through more stable, predictable, and open markets can we support the energy transition, industrial competitiveness, and the security of our economies.
Thank you.
