Critical mineral raw materials, Albania is drafting a dedicated strategy

2025-12-25 17:10:12, Aktualitet CNA

Albania is drafting a Roarmap (development strategy) for critical raw materials in an attempt to identify and analyze their national resources.

In the strategy for the development of the mining sector, the government underlines that the process for drafting this document is being led by the EIT RawMaterials Regional Innovation Center in cooperation with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy, the National Agency for Natural Resources (AKBN) and the Albanian Geological Survey (SHGJSH) and constitutes one of the most important strategic initiatives of the decade.

"The document aims to identify, analyze and assess national resources of CRMs, including base metals, ferrometals and rare minerals that are of particular importance for green transition technologies, renewable energy, defense and the digital industry."

"The Roadmap serves as a long-term planning instrument for the sustainable development of the national value chain, from exploration and extraction, to processing, recycling and industrial integration, ensuring alignment with the objectives of the European Critical Raw Materials Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1252)," the strategy states.

Earlier, a study by the European Training Foundation, part of the European Union, analyzed the capacities of countries regarding raw materials as a form of coordination and guarantee for Europe and the development of the industry. Regarding Albania, the study brought to attention that Albania has production of some of the critical raw materials, first of all, cobalt, which is found in the mining areas of Pogradec.

This material is of particular importance for lithium batteries, which are an important part of electric cars and smart phones. Secondly, there is copper, with reserves in the Lezha and Kukës areas. Copper is of particular importance for a series of sectors from energy to construction.

The third is feldspar, which in Albania is found in the Shkodra area and is important for the ceramics, porcelain, and paint sectors. Another material is Nickel, which in Albania is found in Kukës, Devoll, Çervenakë, Përrenjas, and Librazhd as class C deposits and a class B deposit in Devoll./Monitor.al