It’s like they are also realigning their economy. Hmm
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Beijing wants to convince Washington that rare earths are its trump card. They’re not. This is a small market vulnerable to innovation, recycling and modest investment. China’s leverage is fading — and if the U.S. keeps its composure, that “weapon” will soon look more like a bluff.
https://thehill.com/opinion/international/5634021-china-rare-earth-leverage/
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MP’s Saudi Refinery Bet: Strategic Win, Execution Risk, and Valuation Questions
I double dog dare Xi to put pressure on the Saudis to back off REE refining. lol
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As Rare Earth Exchanges™ (REEx) has reported, Germany’s foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, travels to China this week with a blunt message: Europe’s economic security is now inseparable from rare earths, steel, and the broader strategic materials landscape. In remarks released ahead of the trip, Wadephul warned that Chinese “trade restrictions, particularly on rare earths,” are becoming a central threat to German industry—placing critical minerals squarely on the diplomatic agenda.
Europe’s Rare Earth Awakening: Germany Signals Strategic Shift Ahead of China Visit
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The Trump administration is forming a coalition to counter China’s dominant control of critical minerals and emerging power as a center of AI and other tech sectors.
The administration plans to launch the coalition of partners with the signing Friday of the Pax Silica Declaration, uniting Australia, Israel, Japan, Singapore and South Korea in a collaboration intended to address deficits in critical mineral access edging out China’s massive investment in its critical minerals and tech sector. The administration is actively looking to enlist other countries to join the group.
Which one of those countries is going to volunteer to do the really hard part of producing rare-earths, the refining process?
“According to Mr. Uemura, the Sojitz chief executive, the toughest bottleneck was the refining process in Malaysia. The chemical separation of rare earths produces large volumes of acidic waste and thousands of tons of low-level radioactive residue. Proper management and disposal of the waste is expensive and time consuming.
Between 2011 and 2012, the Lynas facility in Malaysia faced months of delays because of fierce local opposition and legal challenges. The facility began operating only after it revised its residue management plan multiple times.
In contrast, Chinese processing factories are often lightly regulated, and some illegally operated, creating toxic waste sites.”
Saudi Arabia has agreed to open a refining facility with MP. So raw materials from Ukraine and Madagascar shipped to SA, refined and the refined metals shipped to Korea to make the magnets. 
New world order. China played FAFO and looks like they lost.
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I agree China made a bad calculation. They should have reserved that for when it would have inflicted severe damage, like in a future war scenario. What does this miscalculation say about China?
Pride kills. On a marginal level or more, I bet the US seizing an oil tanker has clenched a few red sphincters.
Interesting. I would also expect additional overtures to do the same in southern Greenland where it’s close to major deposits on the island that can be easily reached.
Purchasing and building a stockpile of refined materials in the interest of national security wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
I wonder if the Greenland and Canadian “ore” will be refined in the US, or better yet, the Great White North. They started the tar sands oil recovery , so filthifying the environment isn’t new or much news.
more that the environmental impact can be minimized and better disposed of closer to the site where mining and takes place.
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It depends on RRE, some are extremely dirty processing…. I doubt Greenlanders will say yes. If they can be convinced to allow the mines there would be a big thing already
Google search brought up a few existing mines in the south, but I don’t know what the production rate or sizes are.
Bringing the ore north to a more remote processing area might be more feasible and palpable to the public. All the dirty refining would be far to the north.
Greenlanders are extremely protective of their environment. Any existing mine in Greenland has been slowly scrutinized before allowed. They could have had heaps of mines already if they didn’t care about the environment
Denmark can not push them, it’s the decision of the Greenlanders themself
The separating and refining isn’t just dirty. It’s toxic af. MP does a great job but it is very pricey to get started, which is why SA is the next best option. far away from the US consumer and further from the EPA.
Move it to China 
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