mining

It is easy to pity the U.S. policymaker, who has more than a few crises to cope with, but America can no longer afford to push aside the critical issue of metals and minerals.  Decisions made now — or inaction, which is a decision in itself — will shape our economic competitiveness and national security posture for years to come.  What will the U.S. do? Read my thoughts, which I shared in a piece for RealClearWorld.com. There, I explain the three bellwether bills worth watching.

Take a read, and then please share your comments below. What impact do you think bills like the RARE Act could have on the U.S. Rare Earths mining industry?

Canada’s Globe and Mail leads with a quote well-known in rare metals circles:  “The Middle East has oil…and China has rare earths.” Following Xiaoping
Deng’s 1992 dictum, China developed its rare earths production to the point where, today, it provides 97 percent of the world’s supply.

But don’t blame China for capitalizing on its market choke-hold.  If China has a near-monopoly, it’s because the U.S. gave it to them, discontinuing all rare earths mining nearly a decade ago.  Little known fact:  as much as 15 percent of global rare earths resources can be found under American soil.  As in the case of other metals and minerals, our rare earths dependency is of our own making.

Molycorp, the leading edge of the U.S. re-entry into Rare Earths production, has acquired a controlling share in Estonia-based Silmet, one of only two rare earths refineries in Europe. The deal will allow Molycorp to double its planned production capacities to roughly 6,000 tons per year.