US tungsten scrap export controls emerge as model for Europe
New US rules will require sellers to reserve monthly tungsten scrap sales for domestic buyers from August 27 unless regulators grant an exception. Plansee Group CEO Karlheinz Wex is urging Europe to adopt similar measures to retain critical material, expand recycling and reduce dependence on China.
US rule prioritises domestic tungsten buyers
The United States is tightening controls on tungsten scrap as concerns grow over access to a metal used in defence, machining, aerospace and electrical engineering. Recyclingportal.eu reports that a new Bureau of Industry and Security rule will require US sellers, from August 27, to reserve their entire monthly sales of tungsten scrap for domestic buyers unless the agency approves an exception.
The restrictions on tungsten and black mass form part of the Trump administration’s effort to secure critical raw materials important to national defence and the military. The measure follows Chinese export controls on tungsten introduced last year. According to Recyclingportal.eu, those controls sharply reduced availability, while the market price has since increased sevenfold.
Plansee urges Europe to retain scrap
Karlheinz Wex, chief executive of Plansee Group, described the US restrictions as a model for European policymakers. He argued that keeping critical raw materials within regional markets would support local recycling and reduce dependence on China. Europe is still losing valuable tungsten scrap that could instead reinforce its own supply, he said.
Wex said recycling offers a faster response to scarcity than new mining capacity. Industrial tungsten-recycling processes have operated reliably for decades, whereas development of a mine can take as long as 15 years. His proposed European approach combines systematic scrap collection, regional processing and closed material loops with diversified supply chains and long-term purchase agreements involving independent mining projects.
Recycling underpins Plansee’s supply strategy
Plansee Group, the largest tungsten processor outside China, operates recycling facilities in both the United States and Europe. In its 2025/26 financial year, the company produced 14,200 tonnes of tungsten products, equivalent to about 12% of the global market. Nearly 90% of its sold products were made from recycled tungsten, while mining supplied only around 10%.
The group has operated US recycling capacity through its subsidiary Global Tungsten & Powders since 2008 and announced further investment in American sites in February. The new controls should benefit those operations by retaining more feedstock in the domestic market. Plansee’s wider resilience strategy rests on collecting and sorting scrap, applying thermal-mechanical and chemical recycling processes, and securing material through long-term mine offtake agreements. The company recently extended its agreement with Almonty Industries for South Korea’s Sangdong mine to 21 years. For European processors, the US policy raises a practical question: whether unrestricted scrap outflows are compatible with the region’s ambition to secure critical-mineral supply. Export restrictions could increase feedstock availability for European recyclers, but additional collection, sorting and processing capacity would still be required to turn retained scrap into usable tungsten products.