What does the evidence suggest about current patterns and future trajectories of demand for critical minerals in the UK, including key domestic and international dependencies, and what factors are shaping these trends?
Background
Global pressures, including currency movements and economic security policies, have direct and indirect effects on supply chains, global trade flows, and economic and national security in the UK. We seek evidence to strengthen economic security and supply chain resilience, ensuring UK businesses can scale-up and compete globally. The topics in this theme enable government to strengthen our economic and national security, as well as ensuring supply chains are understood and reinforced to be resilient to both long-term change and economic shocks.
Due to a new era of geopolitical competition, the UK faces the possibility of rising geopolitical instability and the increase of volatile supply chains, therefore understanding how to take assertive, protective, and strategic steps will help to support economic growth and resilience. We have included questions that relate to trends for supply chains, global economic challenges to business growth, critical mineral dependencies, and global trade flows.
Delivering economic security and resilient supply chains requires:
- enabling climate change adaption and accelerating the need for secure, homegrown energy
- creating opportunities for firms to capture market share in strategic technologies
- supporting UK sectors to be globally competitive and securing a spot on the global stage
- building a reputation as a stable, reliable partner, while also building UK-based capabilities and supply
- giving businesses the tools, knowledge, and support to traverse uncertain and volatile environments
Next steps
Get in touch with [email protected]
Topics
No topics assigned yet
Research fields
No research fields assigned yet
Related UKRI funded projects
-
MINERS: critical Minerals for Resilience and sustainability: mapping of complex Critical Minerals' value chains and future policy pathways
MINERS aims to drive a global research agenda and partnership network between the UK and Canada to enhance Critical Minerals (CMs) supply chain resilience and sustainability in the UK and globally. It will do this by: bu...
Funded by: NERC
Lead research organisation: University College London
Why might this be relevant?
The project focuses on critical minerals supply chain resilience and sustainability, mapping complex value chains, and identifying policy pathways, directly addressing the question.
-
Critical Elements and Materials Network (CrEAM)
As the global population advances towards 9 billion, the pressure on natural resources becomes ever more intense. The emergence of new technologies which also depend heavily on scarce elements and materials puts further ...
Funded by: EPSRC
Lead research organisation: University of Birmingham
Why might this be relevant?
The project aims to safeguard UK industry against shortages of critical elements and materials, develop strategies, and propose a comprehensive UK Elements Strategy, aligning with the question.
-
UKRI FCDO Senior Research Fellowships (Non-ODA): Critical minerals and supply chains
This Fellowship is to embed a researcher within the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in the subject area of critical minerals and their supply chains. Critical minerals are defined as raw materials that are e...
Funded by: EPSRC
Lead research organisation: University of Leicester
Why might this be relevant?
The project embeds a researcher within the FCDO focusing on critical minerals and supply chains, addressing the question's focus on critical minerals, supply chains, and policy implications.