California rare earths miner races to refine amid U.S.-China trade row, page-2

But there are plenty of known substitutes. They got that wrong. Apart from the laser elements, none of the rare earths are essential to normal life. The magnets are pretty much irreplaceable in iPhones etc for the loudspeakers, sure, and in the servo motors in vehicles, but the phosphors have several cheaper alternatives, cerium use for glass is much reduced, and now we have the HET in the pipeline to eliminate NdPr in the larger motors:

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019...ims-have-developed-holy-grail-electric-motors

Much more torque, no gearbox, 10% more efficient (giving greater range from same battery) and no REE.