Bernd Schäfer has over 30 years of international business experience. Prior to joining EIT RawMaterials as CEO and Managing Director, he was CEO of apt Group, a leading European aluminium extrusion and processing company. Previously, he was Vice President of Commercial, Global Commercial Transportation and Industrial at Alcoa. His area of accountability included global market responsibility as well as execution of the innovation agenda and technology roadmap. Mr. Schäfer was a long-time Board Member of the Aluminium Industry Association and the umbrella association of metal-producing companies in Germany until 2020.
EIT RawMaterials is the world’s largest innovation community in the raw material sector. The organisation fosters international partnerships and promotes investments and upscaling activities across the raw materials value chain, from exploration to mining, processing, recycling, and innovative product design solutions. In September 2020, EIT RawMaterials was entrusted by the European Commission with the management of the European Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA), which has over 750 international partners from industry, governments, and NGOs. More than 30 investment proposals within the primary and secondary industries have been assessed with a total investment value of close to €20bn.
EIT RawMaterials has supported more than 400 start-ups, many of which in upscaling activities. In cooperation with 350 universities, the organisation is, in addition, leading the EIT HEI (Higher Education Institutions) Initiative to address the EU skills demand in the industry. EIT RawMaterials is supporting many of the EU initiatives, in particular the European Commission‘s international raw materials partnerships. The organisation is closely collaborating with major European industry associations, member states and financing institutions.