Jeffrey A. Newman
China has halted its sale of rare earth minerals to the United States. In early April, Beijing engaged major export controls on seven rare earth elements used in everything from laser-guided weapons to MRI machines. The restricted elements include samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium—require a government-issued license for export, with Chinese officials citing “national security” justifications for the change.
Since 2010, the DOD’s demand for components containing five critical minerals—antimony, gallium, germanium, tungsten, and tellurium—has sspiked, with contracts growing by 23.2% annually and gallium-related contracts alone increasing 41.8% per year. More than 80,000 distinct parts across 1,900 weapons now depend on these materials, or about 78% of all DoD weapons may be affected, according to a new report by the Govini data analytics firm. The Navy leads in dependency, with over 91% of its systems containing at least one of the minerals.
Gallium, is a mineral having used heavily in GPS systems and radars. China’s 2024 export bans now expanded to include tungsten and tellurium, Even antimony mined in Australia becomes unusable for U.S. systems if refined in China. Most of the antimony used in critical military products such as the F-16, Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, and Minuteman III missile passes through China at some stage of processing. Only 19% is accessible without Chinese intermediaries. The strategic cost is already measurable—prices for gallium-containing parts jumped 6% within three months of the bans; antimony parts rose 4.5%, while all other DoD parts rose just 1.4%.
Several countries other than China possess the capacity to mine and process rare earth minerals, though China’s dominance remains significant due to its integrated supply chain and advanced processing infrastructure.
Here’s an overview of the leading countries with notable rare earth mining and processing capabilities:
United States
- The US is the second-largest producer of rare earth elements, primarily from the Mountain Pass mine in California. While the US has robust mining capacity, it still relies on China for much of the downstream processing, though efforts are underway to expand domestic refining and separation capabilities. To find its own nickel, litium and more the U.S. is now using AI to find its mineral rich deposits. New technologies from a number of companies are searching.Kobold Metals, VerAI and a startup called Earth AI are in a race to get the metals to market as soon as possible. Earth AI combines AI-powered mineral discovery software with proprietary drilling technology. Its data goes back 50 years.new technologies from a slew of companies might be changing the game.
- Kobold Metals, VerAI and a startup called Earth AI are in a race to get the metals to market as soon as possible. US Critical Materials Corp. has announced that it has signed a definitive agreement with VerAI Discoveries Inc. (VerAI), an artificial intelligence (AI) powered mineral discovery generator, to deploy its AI-Powered Mineral Targeting Platform. This technology enables a higher probability of success to detect minerals under covered terrain and to minimize surface disturbances at US Critical Materials’ Sheep Creek rare earths properties in Montana.
Australia
- Australia is a major rare earths producer, with significant operations at the Mount Weld mine (Lynas Rare Earths), which also processes rare earths at facilities in Malaysia and is expanding its domestic processing capacity. Australia is recognized as the largest non-Chinese supplier of rare earths and is investing in further refining and separation infrastructure257.
Myanmar (Burma)
- Myanmar is a key supplier of medium to heavy rare earths, particularly to China. Most of its production is exported to China for processing, but the country has become a critical part of the global rare earth supply chain, especially for elements like dysprosium and terbium126.
Thailand
- Thailand has rapidly increased its rare earth production in recent years and exports significant quantities to China. The country hosts both mining and some downstream processing facilities125.
Nigeria
- Nigeria has emerged as a new player, significantly increasing its rare earth output. The country is in the early stages of developing both mining and processing capacity, with international partnerships to advance its industry26.
India
- India holds substantial reserves and produces rare earths, mainly from beach sand minerals. While its production remains modest compared to its potential, India is investing in expanding both mining and processing capabilities, including plans for new alloy and magnet plants247.
Madagascar
- Madagascar produces rare earths from the Ampasindava peninsula, which hosts significant ionic clay deposits. However, production has declined recently due to local opposition to mining activities2.
Brazil
- Brazil has the world’s second-largest rare earth reserves and has recently begun commercial production at the Pela Ema deposit. The country is expected to become a more significant producer and processor in the coming years, with plans to produce all four key magnet rare earths (neodymium, praseodymium, terbium, dysprosium)47.
Russia
- Russia has modest rare earth mining and processing capacity, with ongoing efforts to expand its role in the global market5.
Other Notable Regions
- Europe: While there are currently no operational rare earth mines, countries like Sweden (Per Geijer deposit) and Greenland have significant reserves and are developing projects to build up mining and processing capacity4.
Jeff Newman JD MBA, represents whistleblowers in tariff fraud cases, Medicare and Medicaid fraud cases under the False Claims Act (Qui Tam), and SEC, and IRS whistleblower programs. He can be reached at Jeff@JeffNewmanLaw.com or at 617-823-3217
