China's rare earths industry has a raw materials problem

China's imports of rare earth raw materials are surging, raising concerns about the risks of foreign dependence

By

Mary Hui

Published14 hours ago

China may already dominate the world’s supply chains of rare earth metals. Even so, it is increasingly worried about securing enough raw materials to feed its vast industrial appetite.

Numbers bear this out. China’s grip on rare earth production has slipped even as other countries have ramped up their own production. Its share of global mining output fell to 58% in 2021, from a high of 98% in 2010. At the same time, its imports of rare earth raw materials have grown, jumping nearly 40% in 2021, according The Rare Earth Observer, an industry newsletter.

+++ a few graphs & general industry///

“China’s rare earth industry has a raw material problem,” Thomas Krümmer, the author of The Rare Earth Observer and director of the Singapore-based firm Ginger International Trade and Investment, said in an email to Quartz. He estimates that China has less than 20% of the world’s rare earth natural resources, although it accounts over 85% of global rare earth processing—a stark imbalance that “causes them discomfort.”

“China depends so much on imports of rare earth raw material from abroad, [and] they are painfully aware that this dependency could be used against them,” said Krümmer. “What would they do if the US cut them off from Mountain Pass supplies?”

Mountain Pass, owned by the New York-listed MP Materials, is the only commercially active rare earths mine in the US. Currently it sells the bulk of its output to China, to be processed there. MP Materials declined to comment for this article.

https://qz.com/china-rare-earths-raw-materials-shortage-1850232896