EIT RawMaterials and Tenerrdis have chosen to form a partnership, with the goal of connecting their networks and creating new opportunities for innovative and strategic projects in Europe involving Tenerrdis members and EIT RawMaterials players.

Press release issued on 7 December 2022 – Silicon, lithium and rare earth metals play a major role in the renewable energy industry and technological innovations that it is credited with.

Safeguarding the future of these industries in Europe is becoming essential for both France and the EU as a whole. This is in addition to the imperative of pursuing the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050 via the preservation of our planet’s resources, the development of sustainable access solutions, and recycling critical materials.

As a result, EIT RawMaterials and Tenerrdis have chosen to form a partnership, with the goal of connecting their networks and creating new opportunities for innovative and strategic projects in Europe involving Tenerrdis members and EIT RawMaterials players.

 

The joint road map developed by the two partners is structured around 4 main objectives:

1/ Creating strategic innovation and training projects in the field of raw materials

2/ Obtaining access European funding, in particular from the European Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA), managed by EIT RawMaterials

3/ Connecting the 2 networks and making them more visible

4/ Mobilising experts from each organisation with the goal of joint participation in selection committees for innovative projects.

Such a partnership is expected to expedite creating, funding and rolling out of innovative and strategic projects which will contribute to European sovereignty in the field of energy transition.

 

‘We are delighted to collaborate more closely with Tenerrdis to improve access to the best entrepreneurs and start-ups, as well as to address fundamental issues related to raw materials. Through our work with Tenerrdis, the number of collaborative opportunities in Europe will not only increase but enable us to better serve EIT RawMaterials’ overarching mission which is to secure a resilient and sustainable supply of raw materials in Europe.’
Michel Vanavermaete, Director of EIT Raw Materials Innovation Hub Central and West

 

 ‘The rise in new technologies designed to accelerate the roll-out of renewable energies has highlighted new critical materials as a requirement for energy transition. This involves considering issues related to access, reuse, and recycling of these resources as soon as possible. The collaboration between Tenerrdis and EIT Raw Materials increases this effort to secure resources and provides Tenerrdis members with an additional guarantee of effective support for European strategic projects linked to this major issue for the years to come.’
Séverine Jouanneau Si Larbi, CEO of Tenerrdis

 

Critical materials and energy transition: RESiLEX

The RESiLEX European project, of which Tenerrdis is a partner, has chosen to focus on silicon as it has been identified as the key raw material for the battery and photovoltaic industries. It is a project which aims at developing a range of innovative solutions for addressing existing challenges in various areas of the two value chains. The economic, social, and environmental impacts will be assessed over the course of the 4-year project. The consortium brings together 21 partners (industrial businesses, SMEs, research centres, associations) from 8 European countries.

 

EIT RawMaterials

EIT RawMaterials forms part of the leading European raw materials partnership. It was established in 2015, with the goal of promoting Europe’s transition towards a sustainable economy. EIT RawMaterial’s task is to assist in securing the supply of critical raw materials for European industries via the promotion of innovation, education, and technology throughout the raw materials value chain.

EIT RawMaterials relies on the world’s largest network of partners within the field of raw and advanced materials – these represent a strong presence in the sphere of the industries, universities and research centres leaned on to ensure innovation in the sector. This includes start-ups and SMEs, which play an important role as innovators, suppliers, and customers of major industry players.

 

Tenerrdis Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Tenerrdis is an energy transition competitive cluster which promotes sustainable activity growth and permanent job creation in new energy technology industries. It brings together 272 members and mobilises all players (businesses, research and education bodies, local authorities, etc.) to enable, develop and promote innovative solutions for a low-carbon world. Since its creation in 2005, Tenerrdis has approved or supported 1,024 innovation projects, 40% of which were funded with a value of €721 million in public funding and a total budget of €2.2 billion.