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USA Rare Earth, the funding and development partner of the Round Top heavy rare earth project and Texas Mineral Resources announced Thursday that its rare earths pilot plant processing facility in Wheat Ridge, Colorado has received the required permits and officially opened. Once fully commissioned, the plant will be focused on group separation of rare earths into heavy (dysprosium, terbium), middle, and light (neodymium, praseodymium) rare earths (REE’s) and will be the first facility to separate the full range of rare earth elements in the US since 1999. USA Rare Earth’s pilot plant is the second link in a 100%...

There is a high probability that the small battery in your smartphone contains lithium from Chilean deposits, Indonesian nickel, as well as cobalt mined in Congolese mines controlled by the Chinese and employing local children. Critical minerals and rare earth metals have today become the central point of geopolitical rivalry between powers, because whoever controls critical minerals controls the future. "You can't produce clean energy without dirty extractive industry." These words from the director of advanced magnet lab perfectly capture the paradox of our times. On one hand we talk about decarbonization and green transformation' on the other we need...

On June 24, 2012, the body of Shane Todd, a young US electrical engineer, was found hanging in his Singapore apartment. The Singapore Police say it was suicide, but the Todd family believes he was murdered. -excerpt- ... Shane told his family that he was being asked to compromise US security and he feared for his life. Shane refused to do what he was being asked to do and turned in his sixty day notice at IME. Shane found a good job with a company in Virginia, and bought a ticket to fly back to the US on July 1,...

Jan 3 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday issued the final mining permit for Perpetua Resources' (PPTA.O), opens new tab Idaho antimony and gold project, a move aimed at spurring U.S. production of a critical mineral at the center of a widening trade war between Washington and Beijing. Permitting for the mine, backed by billionaire investor John Paulson, comes after Beijing last month blocked exports to the U.S. of antimony,... Perpetua's mine will supply more than 35% of America's annual antimony needs once it opens by 2028 and produce 450,000 ounces of gold each year,...The project has not won...

China is planning to restrict exports of a key mineral needed to make weapons while a U.S. company that could be reducing America’s reliance on foreign suppliers is languishing in red tape, energy experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation. The Chinese government announced on August 15 that it will restrict exports of antimony, a critical mineral that dominates the production of weapons globally and is essential for producing equipment like munitions, night vision goggles and bullets that are essential to national security, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Perpetua Resources, an American mining company, has...

China announced Tuesday it is banning exports to the United States of gallium, germanium, antimony and other key high-tech materials with potential military applications, as a general principle, lashing back at U.S. limits on semiconductor-related exports. The Chinese Commerce Ministry announced the move after the Washington expanded its list of Chinese companies subject to export controls on computer chip-making equipment, software and high-bandwidth memory chips. Such chips are needed for advanced applications. The ratcheting up of trade restrictions comes as President-elect Donald Trump has been threatening to sharply raise tariffs on imports from China and other countries, potentially intensifying simmering...

China has banned exports to the United States of items related to the minerals gallium, germanium and antimony that have potential military applications, it said on Tuesday, a day after Washington’s latest crackdown on China’s chip sector.. A commerce ministry directive on dual-use items with both military and civilian applications cited national security concerns. The order, which takes immediate effect, also requires stricter review of end-usage for graphite items shipped to the U.S.. “In principle, the export of gallium, germanium, antimony, and superhard materials to the United States shall not be permitted,” the commerce ministry said. The curbs strengthen enforcement...

China’s exports of two rare minerals essential for manufacturing semiconductors fell to zero in August, a month after Beijing imposed curbs on sales overseas, citing national security. China produces about 80% of the world’s gallium and about 60% of germanium, according to the Critical Raw Materials Alliance, but it didn’t sell any of the elements on international markets last month, Chinese customs data released on Wednesday showed. In July, the country exported 5.15 metric tons of forged gallium products and 8.1 metric tons of forged germanium products. When asked about the lack of exports last month, He Yadong, a spokesperson...

Beijing’s “chokepoint strategy” for rare metals could very well dictate the future balance of technological power.Two metallic elements, tucked deep within the periodic table, have emerged as key drivers of world politics. On July 3, China’s Ministry of Commerce and China Customs announced export controls on gallium and germanium products (including compounds), effective August 1. This action, aimed at “safeguarding national security and interests,” according to Chinese officials, has stirred global panic within various industries, governments, and media outlets. Although these two rare metals only account for several hundred million dollars in global trade—a figure that pales in comparison with...

From August, China is to restrict exports of gallium and germanium, two critical elements for making semiconductor chips. With China dominating the supply of both elements, exporters will now need special licenses to get them out of the country. The move has the potential to harm a range of Western tech manufacturers that use these elements to make their products. The move is reportedly in response to Western restrictions on equipment vital for making semiconductor devices. Above all, the US CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 curtailed exports of high-end microchips and technology to China, potentially affecting Beijing’s capacity for...

Gallium and germanium are silvery-white metals that can be found in a wide variety of electronics, such as semiconductors, smartphones, pressure sensors, transistors and fibre optics, as well as solar panels, camera lenses and space systems. Invoking "national security interests," the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said on Monday that companies that intend to sell products containing the two targeted materials would need to first obtain an export licence. In practice, this means that if the central government refuses to issue the licence, the company will be outright banned from exporting. The government will treat the merchandise as a "dual-use" item,...

China is imposing export restrictions on two metals used in the manufacturing of semiconductors, deepening a trade conflict between Beijing and democratic nations over the all-important chips. China's commerce ministry announced the implementation of export controls on gallium and germanium Monday, stating it was done "in order to safeguard national security and interests." The regulations require exporters to secure a license to ship the two metals and related products starting Aug. 1, the ministry said, adding that the end use and end user must be identified in the application. ... The announcement also comes days before U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet...

The parents of a U.S. engineer found dead in Singapore last year said on Wednesday they will not take part in the rest of a coroner’s inquiry into his death, which they say was linked to a project involving the transfer of sensitive technology to China. In a statement issued through their lawyers, Rick and Mary Todd said they had lost confidence in the system investigating the death of their 31-year-old son, Shane, who was found hanging in his Singapore apartment last June. The Todds did not appear in court on Wednesday, the day after a U.S. medical examiner they...

WEST LAFAYETTE, INDIANA, USA -- A Purdue University engineer has developed a method that uses an aluminum alloy to extract hydrogen from water for running fuel cells or internal combustion engines. The technique could be used to replace gasoline, though it is not quite cost-competitive yet. The method makes it unnecessary to store or transport hydrogen - two major challenges in creating a hydrogen economy, said Jerry Woodall, a distinguished professor of electrical and computer engineering at Purdue who invented the process. "The hydrogen is generated on demand, so you only produce as much as you need when you need...