On November 9, 2019, the European Commission published a summary report covering a study on materials dependencies for dual-use technologies relevant to Europe's defense and civil sectors. The purpose of the report is to support the European Commission’s efforts in assessing the European Union’s needs relevant to materials needed to develop Europe’s defense and civil industries.
The study covered by the report focuses on five dual-use technology areas:
- Advanced batteries;
- Fuel cells;
- Robotics;
- Unmanned vehicles; and
- Additive manufacturing (3D printing).
The European Commission explains that “This report examines how these technologies could address specific military needs and their differences in relation to civil needs, and identified opportunities for future defence research areas that could potentially serve as a basis for the design of research initiatives to be funded under the future European Defence Fund.”
Additionally, this study helped identify potential future common policy actions including the strengthening of Europe's position in the supply chains of the technologies referenced above, increasing the involvement of industry members with special emphasis on SMEs, amongst others.
The published report can be found here.
