The EU imported commodities worth €108.3 billion from Russia in 2021, a sum representing 65 % of all goods it imported from Russia that year. Energy commodities represented 91 % of commodity imports (€98.9 billion), raw materials 7 % (€7.3 billion) and food commodities 2 % (€2.1 billion). Imports of the top 20 commodities for which the EU depended on Russia most in 2021 (Figure 1) totalled €103.4 billion, representing 95 % of EU imports from Russia. The highest dependency rate was for nickel ores. Nickel is used for many products (mainly stainless steel, a range of alloys, electroplating and the fast-growing electric vehicle battery market). In 2021, Russia was the world’s third biggest nickel producer, mining 250 000 tonnes (9.2 % of global production). A number of energy commodities (natural gas, oil, coal) also feature prominently in this ranking. Coke and iron ore, two materials used in steelmaking are in the top 20. Iron ore is also mainly used in steelmaking, through the blast furnace route. Sulphur, used mainly to produce sulphuric acid, is of prime importance for many industrial sectors. Synthetic rubber is used to produce tyres and other consumer goods.
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