The Ministry of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, in collaboration with international partners, has presented the White Paper 2026, ‘Unlocking the Potential of Ukraine’s First Projects in the Field of Critical and Strategic Raw Materials’. The document builds on the strategic roadmap presented at the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2025 and contains practical recommendations for launching the first investment projects in the sector. The White Paper identifies priority areas for the sector’s development, including expanding domestic processing, attracting private capital, integrating Ukraine into European industrial supply chains, and producing high value-added products.
Particular attention has been paid to the modernisation of geological data, the development of geological exploration, the streamlining of licensing procedures, the harmonisation of legislation with EU standards, and the development of human capital and innovation.
The document also highlights Ukraine’s achievements, in particular the opening up of most geological data, the launch of the Ukraine-US Recovery Investment Fund (URIF), the tender for the ‘Dobra’ lithium deposit, and the approval of the Strategy for the Development of the Critical Raw Materials Sector up to 2056. The White Paper is intended to serve as the foundation for Ukraine’s future cooperation with international partners and investors in the development of the critical raw materials sector.