This article's focus is on the strong Western interest (ie the...

This article's focus is on the strong Western interest (ie the West wants to decouple from "unreliable/blackmailing" China's domination of REE supply chains etc.) in Vietnam's potential Rare Earth's industry.

It reinforces the "decoupling from Chinese REE" theme. Australia is already a major supplier of REE- &, of course, is regarded as a Tier 1 country to invest in.
HAS' lucrative REE deposits will almost certainly attract significant debt funding, for mine development- the widespread Western desire/urgency/necessity to decouple from China is probably immutable.


Argus Media 5.1.23 N. Willing said

"Vietnam is positioning itself to play a key role in expanding the global rare earths supply chain away from China, as demand for a range of applications increases and GEOPOLITICAL(my emphasis) concerns drive calls for a wider supply base...
More recently, other countries have started turning to Vietnam to secure supply before it comes out of the ground by investing in development projects.

The country's economy is growing fast — estimated by Fitch Solutions to reach 7.8pc in 2022 and 6.5pc this year. And it is becoming an increasingly attractive regional base for companies responding to US-China trade tensions...

Vietnam is becoming an important production base in southeast Asia for electronic components and devices and is one of the fastest-growing renewable energy markets. Several countries are forming partnerships with the Vietnamese government and private companies with a view to establishing an integrated supply chain for rare earths and other critical materials.

In early December, Vietnam's trade minister signed an agreement with his South Korean counterpart to co-operate on the exploration and development of core minerals including rare earths in Vietnam to provide STABLE (my emphasis) global supply chains".

https://www.argusmedia.com/en/news/2406483-vietnam-becomes-focus-for-new-rare-earths-supply