The biggest flex we (US) could do is pouring money into NASA and grabbing asteroids.
China's rare earth export restrictions threaten global chipmaking supply chains
Submitted 3 days ago by cm0002@lemmy.world to technology@lemmy.world
Comments
FordBeeblebrox@lemmy.world 1 day ago
tal@lemmy.today 3 days ago
Effective immediately, exporters of products containing Scandium, Dysprosium, Gadolinium, Terbium, Lutetium, Samarium, and Yttrium must apply for an export license from the China Ministry of Economy. The application requires customers to detail the final use of the material.
en.wikipedia.org/…/Mountain_Pass_Rare_Earth_Mine
The Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine and Processing Facility, owned by MP Materials, is an open-pit mine of rare-earth elements on the south flank of the Clark Mountain Range in California, 53 miles (85 km) southwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2020 the mine supplied 15.8% of the world’s rare-earth production. It is the only rare-earth mining and processing facility in the United States.[1][2] It is the largest single known deposit of such minerals.[3]
As of 2022, work was ongoing to restore processing capabilities for domestic light rare-earth elements (LREEs) and work has been funded by the United States Department of Defense to restore processing capabilities for heavy rare-earth metals (HREEs) to alleviate supply chain risk. [4] The mine was reported as operating in 2025.[5]
warontherocks.com/…/a-federal-critical-mineral-pr…
After China’s 2010 rare earth elements embargo, the United States, the European Union, and Japan filed a case against China at the World Trade Organization, ultimately forcing Beijing to remove export quotas by 2015. The United States also revived rare earth mineral processing, including efforts to reopen the Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine in California. In 2023, Washington intensified its “friendshoring” strategy by allocating additional resources to domestic mining and refining through the Department of Defense and Department of Energy budgets, while also strengthening supply chain partnerships with allies like Canada and Australia.
U.S. efforts to reduce dependence on China for critical minerals face a number of significant hurdles. First, domestic refining expansion remains slow, with new processing plants and smelters taking 10–20 years to become operational. For example, the Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine, which reopened after China’s 2010 export controls, still sent 98 percent of its raw materials to China in 2019 due to the lack of U.S. processing capacity.
With our re-commissioned processing facilities, we now deliver separated and refined products, including high-purity NdPr oxide, the cornerstone of the world’s strongest and most efficient permanent magnets.
I sure hope that you guys have found a way to fill that processing capacity gap and reliance at some point between 2019 and now.
9tr6gyp3@lemmy.world 3 days ago
Good. Stop mining this and leave it alone.
partial_accumen@lemmy.world 3 days ago
Are you willing to give up all the products that need these? And all the services you consume that use these?
9tr6gyp3@lemmy.world 3 days ago
Yes. We obviously aren’t responsible enough to handle these devices as it is now. We are eroding our planet of its life by causing drastic changes to our climate, caused by burning up massive amounts of fossil fuels to power our “AI”. This is gross and detestable, and we should reverse course immediately until we can find better alternatives to handle semiconductor manufacturing processes.
expatriado@lemmy.world 3 days ago
and the strong permanent magnets used in efficient generators and motors