Strategic Projects for Critical Minerals
Facts checked against sources on . How we check facts.
A strategic project is one a government has recognised for faster permitting and support, and three regimes matter. The European Commission has recognised 106 projects under the Critical Raw Materials Act: 93 in the EU (47 on 25 March 2025 and 46 on 9 October 2026) and 13 in other countries (4 June 2025). In the United States the Permitting Council said on 20 November 2025 that 50 critical mineral and mining projects were receiving FAST-41 benefits. Canada has referred five critical minerals projects to its Major Projects Office. A designation speeds permits; it does not mean a mine or plant is producing.
106
projects recognised as Strategic Projects under Regulation (EU) 2024/1252: 93 in the EU and 13 in third countries
25 and 17
of the 47 projects selected in March 2025 had completed their environmental impact assessment and obtained a construction permit by 9 October 2026
50
critical mineral and mining projects receiving FAST-41 benefits on 20 November 2025, 49 of them added since January 2025
Source: Permitting Council
27 / 15 months
maximum EU permit-granting time for extraction projects and for other strategic projects; the Commission says permitting can now take five to ten years
How do the three designation regimes compare?
The regimes differ in who designates, how many projects they cover and what a project receives. The table gives each as the source describes it.
| Regime | Projects designated | What the status gives | Source and date |
|---|---|---|---|
| EU Critical Raw Materials Act | 106 (93 in the EU, 13 outside); 20 extraction, 23 processing, 29 recycling, 19 integrated and 2 substitution among the EU projects | Permit-granting limited to 27 months for extraction and 15 months for other projects; coordinated support on finance and links to buyers. It does not automatically bring EU funding. | Commission, decisions of 25 March 2025, 4 June 2025 and 9 October 2026 |
| US FAST-41 | 50 critical mineral and mining projects receiving FAST-41 benefits on 20 November 2025. On 2 April 2026 the covered list held 17 mining projects and the transparency list 21, including uranium and gold projects | Covered projects get a coordinated federal permitting timetable and project management; transparency projects are posted on the permitting dashboard. Six transparency projects had completed federal permitting by 20 November 2025. | Permitting Council, 20 November 2025; lists read on 13 October 2026 (last updated 2 April 2026) |
| Canada Major Projects Office | Five critical minerals projects referred "to date"; the Critical Minerals Strategy was referred on 11 September 2025 | Referral to the Major Projects Office for federal coordination. The page does not name the five projects. | Major Projects Office, page modified 21 May 2026 |
Sources: IP/25/864 and IP/26/2113 for the EU; the Permitting Council's covered and transparency project lists, whose counts are tallied from the pages; and the Major Projects Office page. FAST-41 is the permitting title of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act.
Where are the EU's strategic projects?
The EU projects are spread over 17 member states in the two lists combined, with France, Germany and Finland holding the most. Projects in several countries count once in each country, and the tally is from the annexes to the Commission decisions, so it can differ from press release counts.
| Country | Projects |
|---|---|
| France | 15 |
| Germany | 12 |
| Finland | 11 |
| Italy | 9 |
| Spain | 9 |
| Poland | 6 |
| Portugal | 5 |
| Romania | 5 |
| Belgium | 4 |
| Greece | 4 |
| Netherlands | 4 |
| Sweden | 4 |
Source: annexes to Commission Decisions C(2025) 1904 and C(2026) 8051, tallied by this site. Showing the 12 countries with the most projects. Projects that span several countries are counted in each, and the Commission's 2025 press release gives higher counts for some materials (for example 22 for lithium against 18 here), so use the annex for project-level work.
What does a designation not mean?
A designation is not a production forecast. The Commission describes every project on its lists as ongoing, which covers projects at feasibility stage as well as operating plants, and it names a lack of buyers as the main risk to the 2026 projects. The projects selected in 2025 had by October 2026 advanced as far as 25 completed environmental assessments and 17 construction permits out of 47. The pages on mines, refineries, separation plants and recycling plants list the projects by stage. The permitting page compares the legal deadlines.
Frequently asked questions
What is a strategic project under the Critical Raw Materials Act?
It is a project the European Commission has recognised as contributing to the EU's supply of strategic raw materials. Recognised projects get permit deadlines of 27 months for extraction and 15 months for other projects, and coordinated help with finance and buyers, but no automatic EU funding.
How many EU strategic projects are there?
The Commission has recognised 106 in total: 47 in the EU on 25 March 2025, 13 in third countries on 4 June 2025 and 46 in the EU on 9 October 2026. A new call for applications is expected towards the end of 2026.
What is FAST-41?
FAST-41 is the permitting title of the US Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act. The Permitting Council gives covered projects a coordinated federal permitting timetable and posts transparency projects on its dashboard; it reported 50 critical mineral and mining projects receiving these benefits on 20 November 2025.
Does a strategic project designation mean the mine is operating?
No. The Commission lists all its strategic projects as ongoing, which includes projects that are still being studied, and says that status does not automatically bring funding. By October 2026, 17 of the 47 projects chosen in March 2025 had a construction permit.
Sources
Read on October 13, 2026. Figures on this page come from these documents; where a number is an estimate, the source says so.
- European Commission: selected strategic projects under the Critical Raw Materials Act
- Commission Decision C(2025) 1904, annex (25 March 2025)
- Commission Decision C(2025) 3491, annex (4 June 2025)
- Commission Decision C(2026) 8051, annex (9 October 2026)
- European Commission press release IP/25/864 (25 March 2025)
- European Commission press release IP/26/2113 (9 October 2026)
- Permitting Council: 50 mining and infrastructure projects milestone (20 November 2025)
- Permitting Council: current FAST-41 covered projects and transparency projects (last updated 2 April 2026). Counts are this site's tally of the listed projects
- Canada Major Projects Office: critical minerals projects referred
