The Rare earth They have a leading role in the commercial, technological and geostrategic war that the US and China support. These chemical elements are relatively scarce, and, in addition, they are not usually found purely in nature, but what makes them so special are Its physicochemical properties. In fact, thanks to them they have established themselves as A very valuable resource In numerous industries, especially in electronics and renewable energies.
During the last year and a half the Chinese government has used its control of these chemical elements to defend their strategic interests In full confrontation with the US, Europe and its allies. The interesting thing is that it can do it because it produces approximately 70% of rare earths They are distributed in the world market, and, what is even more important, controls 90% of the processing industry to which it is necessary to submit rare earths so that they can be used.
China refines 99% of the weighing land of the planet
At the current US tension situation, Europe and its allies need to bet on their independence and consolidate their own supply chain. They are in it, but they don’t have it easy. The old continent in particular has been proposed to self -abuse At least 10% of rare earths He needs for 2030 thanks to the exploitation of the new deposits, such as the one he found in January 2023 the LKAB mining company near the city of Kiruna, in northern Sweden.
China’s starting point is very favorable. As we have just seen, with a 70% production of the global market and a control of 90% of the rare earth processing industry this Asian country has this absolutely controlled market. However, we have not yet repaired in a figure more that is also very important: China refine no less than 99% of the heavy lands of the planet. These chemical elements are a subgroup of rare earth characterized by its greater density and lower ionic radius.
Heavy rare earths are a subgroup of rare earths characterized by its greater density and lower ionic radius
In addition, heavy rare earths are less abundant in the earth’s crust than the light ones. To this subgroup belongs as elusive minerals and with names as exotic as gadolinio, the terbio, the display, the holm, the erbium or the tulle, among others. How can we intuit, China does not control 99% of the processing of this kind of rare earth by chance. This absolute leadership is the result of a strategy in which teaching institutions are having an unquestionably protagonist role.
And, according to the newspaper The New York Timesat the moment China has 39 university programs of chemistry specialized in rare earths. Presumably in these training programs students acquire the necessary knowledge to develop their professional career in the chemical industry specialized in rare earth processing. There is no doubt that this is one of the great strengths of the country led by Xi Jinping in this area, especially if we keep in mind that US universities currently do not offer a single specialized program in rare earths.
The article published by The New York Times does not collect it, but in all likelihood European countries that have a greater dependence on rare earths, such as Germany or France, as well as Japan or South Korea are in the same situation as the US. These countries will cost a lot of time to acquire the favorable inertia that China has objectively, so it is reasonable to anticipate that in the short and medium term the rare earth processing industry will continue to be led by strong by the country headed by Xi Jinping.
This Jens Eskelund statementthe president of the Chamber of Commerce of the European Union in China, clearly reflects what the US and Europe face: “Some approvals are coming (the result of negotiation with China), but they are far from being enough to Avoid imminent stops in production. We still face A great interruption in supply chains“
Image | Volker Braun
More information | The New York Times
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