Author(s): Nieke Aerts, Timon Bohn, Sarah Creemers, Shalane Pijnenburg, Pascal Ramaekers en Khee Fung Wong, Roger Voncken (redactie)
Dutch dependency on critical raw materials

Reader’s guide

(To the Dutch pages)
Chapter 1 explains the global importance of this subject and presents the European definition of critical materials. The focus then shifts specifically to the Netherlands and its imports of critical materials. Chapter 2 provides figures on the Netherlands’ position as an importer of critical materials within the EU. Chapter 3 describes how Dutch imports have changed over time, and chapter 4 discusses the main countries of origin. Chapter 5 focuses not on critical materials themselves, but on the products they are used to make.

Chapters 6, 7 and 8 use value chain research to provide further insight into this subject. Chapter 6 looks at what happens to the critical materials that are imported into the Netherlands: what proportions are re-exported, exported indirectly and used for the Dutch market? It also discusses which industrial sectors import critical materials, and indirect dependencies. Chapter 7 deals with dependencies in various supply chains. Chapter 8 addresses the key aspect of sustainability: what is the ecological footprint of imports of critical materials?

While the previous chapters focus on the critical materials with the highest import value or volume, chapter 9 looks at all types of critical materials. It presents the main findings with respect to each material, regardless of the import value or volume. The chapter summarises the appendices to this publication, in which each critical material studied is examined separately.