Europe’s RESourceEU plan to stockpile critical raw materials risks filling warehouses with concentrates and scrap that EU industry cannot directly use, such as tungsten concentrate instead of ammonium paratungstate or magnet-grade rare earth alloys. Nicholas Vafeas argues that the Critical Raw Materials Act’s 2030 target for 40% EU processing capacity will be undermined if procurement is judged only on tonnes, price and delivery speed, favouring refined imports over domestic plants. He calls for stockpile design that underpins European and partner-country processing (e.g. Zambia, Namibia), integrates recycling flows, and uses EU purchasing power to lock in diversified, end-to-end processing routes rather than just raw material supply.

Western Australia has opened public consultation on eight proposed amendments to the Mining Rehabilitation Fund Act 2012 following a 10‑year independent statutory review of the scheme. The discussion paper covers changes to how annual environmental disturbance is reported and levies are calculated for tenement holders contributing to the pooled MRF, which currently replaces traditional unconditional performance bonds for most sites. Geotechs and mine planners should expect potential shifts in closure liability estimation, disturbance mapping requirements and compliance reporting workflows if the amendments proceed.

At least 591 tonnes of illicit gold worth about $74 billion entered the UAE in 2024, including 453 tonnes from African producers and 137 tonnes from countries under international sanctions, accounting for 42% of the country’s total gold imports, SWISSAID reports. Despite 2023 regulations tightening due diligence, only 2 of 52 reviewed Emirati refineries fully apply the new rules, with most still relying on intermediaries and weak traceability. SWISSAID urges reinstating the UAE on the FATF grey list, tougher and public penalties, stronger customs controls, and full disclosure of mined-gold suppliers, warning Swiss refiners—importing 420 tonnes from the UAE in 2024—of elevated sourcing risks.