EU wants to mine the moon for clean energy resources

By James Fernyhough, Jakob Weizman | 09/11/2025 06:11 AM EDT

Geopolitical instability is forcing Europe to look to the heavens for its energy security.

A total lunar eclipse is seen.

Metals such as lithium, copper, nickel and rare earths are essential for renewable energy and electric vehicles, and very few of them are mined within the EU. Thein Zaw/AP

The world order is fracturing and the European Union must turn to outer space in its search for raw materials.

In short, it needs to mine the moon.

So argues the European Commission in a new report on the key threats to Europe’s security and prosperity, published Tuesday.

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“[T]he global order has been shaken tremendously,” the EU executive’s sixth annual Strategic Foresight Report warned, adding non-EU countries may no longer be relied upon to supply materials vital in low-carbon energy technology.

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