April 17, 2025: The US is on course to include foreign battery material producers in a new round of tariffs following the launch of a critical minerals probe — amid claims by US president Donald Trump that the country is being exploited by overseas supply chain dominance.
In an executive order published on April 15, the president instructed the commerce department to analyze critical mineral supply chains and propose ways to ramp up domestic production while reducing reliance on imports.
The move comes as the US and Ukraine have yet to finalize a proposed bilateral mineral rights deal, linked to a potential peace plan for war-torn Ukraine with Russia, following acrimonious talks in the White House in February.
Meanwhile, industry insiders are suggesting that the European Union is instead ramping up its efforts to clinch a deal, whereby Ukraine could be a major partner in fuelling the EU’s own battery raw material needs.
In 2021, the EU signed a strategic partnership with Ukraine aimed at better integrating critical raw materials and battery value and EU observers point out that the ongoing warm relations between the EU and Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, could be a signal to Washington that there is more than one potential partner — and buyer — at the critical raw materials table.
Earlier this year, a European Parliament report noted that Ukraine possesses deposits of 25 of the 34 raw materials identified as critical by the EU.
Last week, on April 9, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen pledged unwavering commitment to Ukraine, as the bloc disbursed an additional €1 billion ($1.2 billion) of financial aid, to be repaid with proceeds from frozen Russian state assets in the EU.
An EU-Ukraine business investment summit, was held the following day.
In his order, Trump has ordered the commerce department to analyze critical mineral supply chains and propose ways to ramp up domestic production while reducing reliance on imports.
Initial findings must be presented within 90 days.
The move, which followed the rolling out of a raft of other trade tariffs in recent weeks, is to address “the distortive effects of the predatory economic, pricing, and market manipulation strategies and practices used by countries that process critical minerals that are exported” to the US, the order said.
According to the order, derivative products include semi-finished goods such as semiconductor wafers, anodes, and cathodes, as well as final products including batteries and EVs.
Processed critical minerals include those converted into oxide concentrates and converted into metals, metal powders and master alloys.
Trump said in the order that major global foreign producers of processed critical minerals have engaged in widespread price manipulation, overcapacity, arbitrary export restrictions, and the exploitation of their supply chain dominance to distort world markets and gain geopolitical and economic leverage over the US and others.
EU backgrounder:
According to a report published by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) on April 14, demand for batteries for EVs has grown significantly, and the EU has struggled to meet this demand through domestic production alone.
When it comes to battery supply chain and manufacturing capacities, the EU continues to compete with major global players like China and remains heavily reliant on imports, ACEA said.
According to the ACEA, the EU still represents only 7% of global battery production, with 15% of EU battery production capacity managed by companies headquartered in Europe, while China and the US account for 87% of global production capacity in the upstream supply chain.
All raw materials refining stages (except cobalt) are dominated by China, the ACEA said.
