The EU Critical Raw Materials Act ("CRMA") was approved in May 2024, and in August 2024, Eurobattery Minerals announced that we would apply to obtains status as a Strategic Project under the CRMA. In the evaluation carried out by the EU Commission and which results were published today, the Hautalampi Project was, to our knowledge, not selected as a strategic project in the first round. All concerned applicants of projects in the EU will be notified individually in the coming days with more details about the assessment results.

The EU Commission received a high number of applications in this first round, a total of approximately 170 applications. These projects relate to different parts of the value chain such as extraction, processing and recycling. Applications have also included a large number of different minerals that are considered strategic, including rare earth metals, lithium, copper, nickel, cobalt. As we mentioned earlier, the Company has not yet received a detailed justification for why the Hautalampi battery mineral project was not designated as strategic.

This is not a setback—it’s a step forward. While our Hautalampi project was not selected as a Strategic Project in this first round of the CRMA call, reaching this stage highlights its importance for Europe’s battery mineral supply. The need for responsibly sourced nickel, cobalt, and copper in Europe is undeniable, we hear about it in the news every day. And our commitment to delivering these critical minerals remains stronger than ever. We will continue our hard work with the same dedication,
strengthening our project and look how we can refine the application for future calls under the CRMA, said Roberto García-Martínez, CEO of Eurobattery Minerals.

As soon as we receive the official communication from The Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW), we will study the possible reasons for the rejection and refine the application for upcoming calls under the CRMA. It has been announced that further calls for Strategic Projects will be opened shortly. The Company will inform the market about possible new applications accordingly.