Tungsten Material File

Applications

The applications of tungsten in the EU are: milling and cutting tools (31%), mining and construction tools (14%), catalysts and pigments (14%) and aerospace and energy applications (14%). Use in The Netherlands: chemical industry (16%), construction (11%), machinery industry (8%), metal products industry (7%) and electrical engineering industry (6%).

Export restrictions

Since the export restriction of February 2025, Chinese exports of tungsten products to the rest of the world have fallen sharply: in terms of weight, total Chinese exports of ammonium paratungstate (APT) and tungsten trioxide fell by 60% and 62% respectively in the period from January to October 2025 compared with the same period a year earlier.

EU imports of tungsten carbides, ferrotungsten and ferrosilicon tungsten, and unwrought tungsten also fell. EU imports from China of tungstate compounds (including APT) and tungsten oxides (including tungsten trioxide) have, however, risen. This may indicate that European companies are building up stocks in anticipation of reduced (future) Chinese supply.

Price trends

Since the Chinese export restrictions of February 2025, European import prices for APT and ferrotungsten alloys have risen by 30.3% and 17.8% respectively. This contributed to a price increase for applications such as high-speed steel and drill bits.

Production and processing

Extraction

Breakdown of tungsten mining: China (~79%), Vietnam (~9%) and the EU (~2%).

Exploration

There has been an increase in investment, particularly from China and the US, to further develop tungsten projects. The US Department of Defense is co-funding the development of the Canadian Mactung mine, and Chinese investment in tungsten projects (e.g. Boguta, Kazakhstan) is on the rise.

Reserves

Distribution of tungsten reserves: Kazakhstan (~51%), China (~33%), Australia (~5%), Canada (~4%) and the EU & UK (~4%).

Processing

Distribution of tungsten processing: China (~86%), US (~4%), Russia (~3%), Vietnam (~3%) and Austria (~2%).

Recycling

Tungsten collection rate in the EU: 58%. EOL-RIR in the EU: 34%. Recycling companies in the EU: Cronimet (Germany), Wolfram Bergbau und Hütten (Austria), BETEK (Germany), Gühring (Germany) and H.C. Starck (Germany). In 2024, H.C. Starck was acquired by Mitsubishi, which plans to scale up its tungsten recycling operations in Europe.

The Netherlands’ role in trade and use

Dutch imports and exports

The Netherlands plays a major role in the global trade in tungsten products due to the presence of companies such as Steinweg, Access World and LKAB Minerals. Trade statistics, adjusted for re-exports, show that in the period 2021–2023, The Netherlands was a consistent net importer of tungsten, crude, including bars obtained solely by sintering (810194), tungsten ore and concentrates thereof (261100), tungsten articles n.e.c. under heading 8101 (810199) and tungsten powder (810110).

Origin of Dutch imports

Between 2019 and 2023, 60% of The Netherlands’ imports of tungsten bars (HS code 810194) came from China, and 43% of its imports of tungsten ore (HS 261100) came from Russia.

Applications in The Netherlands

Tungsten is mainly used as a consumable in chemical catalysts, welding rods, blades and tools. Tungsten powder is used in the production of tungsten components for medical applications (MRI/X-ray tubes). Several companies are active in the field of tungsten product recycling.