Key findings:

• Despite Russia’s resource wealth, a number of metals remain scarce and import-dependent. 
• By 2050, Russia intends to develop its mineral resource base and achieve resource sovereignty.
• Russia has begun actively developing its deposits and has also returned to extracting raw materials from abandoned deposits. Satellite imagery has recorded activity at the Tyrnyauz and Kti-Teberdinskoye tungsten deposits.
• Russia has shifted from European mining equipment manufacturers to those from Turkey, South Africa, and China.
• Western technologies are entering Russia through newly established Turkish companies.

Critical metals’ madness. Access to these vital resources will determine who will dominate the world of tomorrow. After all, they are the backbone of modern technology. The United States and France offer Ukraine various deals on its mineral deposits. And what about Russia? Russia’s full-scale invasion exposed the vulnerabilities of its military-industrial complex, with a critical shortage of raw materials emerging as its Achilles’ heel. To compensate, Moscow is resorting to every possible means – exploiting occupied territories, ramping up domestic extraction, and turning to illegal imports. But can Russia truly sustain its war machine and close the supply chain from raw ore to advanced weaponry on its own?

April 2022. Russia’s blitzkrieg has failed. As the reality of a prolonged conflict sets in, every detail becomes crucial – international influence, access to advanced technology, and even control over raw materials. In response, the European Union announces its fifth package of sanctions, banning the export of quantum computers and high-tech semiconductors to Russia. The state-owned holding company Roselectronics urgently appeals to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu for a price hike on its products. The reason? Metal prices – making up as much as 75% of production costs – have skyrocketed by 250% to 450%, threatening the company’s financial stability.

“Such pricing has a negative impact on the financial stability of the enterprises of Roselectronics JSC and, as a result, creates a threat of non-fulfillment of promising contracts under the state defense order,” reads an internal letter from Roselectronics JSC obtained by OCCRP.