Boron
EU import reliance for boron is 100%. Turkey supplies 99% of the EU’s natural borates, and borate mining there is a state monopoly held by Eti Maden.
Figures
Boron in four figures
EU import reliance
100%
net imports as a share of EU apparent consumption
Source: European Commission, 2023 study (2016 to 2020)
Main EU source
99%
Turkey, for natural borates
Source: European Commission, 2023 study (2016 to 2020)
One country
99%
from one country, against the EU’s 2030 benchmark of no more than 65%
Source: European Court of Auditors, Special report 04/2026, Critical raw materials for the energy transition
EU demand
243kt
of processed borates a year, as B₂O₃, 2016 to 2020
Source: SCRREEN, boron factsheet
Data as of 27 October 2026
Supply in Europe
Europe’s own supply
EU capacity as a share of EU boron demand, 2016 to 2020.
- EU demand100%
- EU extraction capacity0%
- EU processing capacityAbout 29%
- EU recycling capacityAbout 1%
One grain is 1% of EU boron demand. Source: European Court of Auditors, Special report 04/2026; SCRREEN, capacity 2016 to 2020
Outlook
What comes next
- Projects due by 2030
- 0% of 2030 demand
- Known resources
- None known in the EU. Serbia’s Jadar deposit holds an estimated 21 Mt of B₂O₃, about 85 years of EU demand.
- Jadar, Serbia
- Rio Tinto put its lithium and boron project into care and maintenance in November 2025.
Sources: SCRREEN; Mining Weekly. Resources are not reserves.
Origin
Where boron comes from
Use
Where boron is used
Main uses
Over
75%
of world boron use goes into ceramics, detergents, fertilisers and glass
Source: USGS 2026
Turkey
1.5Mt
of refined borates produced in 2025
Source: USGS 2026
Events
Events and measures
- Nov 2025
- Serbia
Rio Tinto puts the Jadar lithium and boron project into care and maintenance.
Source: Mining Weekly
- European Commission, Study on the critical raw materials for the EU (2023)
- European Court of Auditors, Special report 04/2026, Critical raw materials for the energy transition
- USGS, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026
- SCRREEN, boron factsheet
- Mining Weekly, Rio Tinto mothballs flagship Jadar lithium project, 13 November 2025
