Australia will step up production of rare earths and other militarily sensitive "tech metals", the country's defence minister said Monday, as doubts grow over the reliability of Chinese supplies.

Linda Reynolds told an audience in Perth that resource-rich Australia had deposits that could safeguard supplies for allies including the United States and Britain.

So-called tech minerals are used in everything from smartphones and lasers to avionic systems and electronic warfare technologies. But trade tensions have led China to warn that supplies of could be choked.

China produces more than 95 percent of the world's rare earths, and the United States relies on it for upwards of 80 percent of its imports.

Reynolds stressed the importance of Western allies obtaining the metals from outside China.

"(In) Australia we have at least 40 percent of the known reserves of tech metals, whether it's lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite but also most of the rare earths that our current technology and our lifestyles today relies on," she said.

She added that it had been discussed at length at recent Australia-US ministerial consultations and in discussions with British counterparts.

"What we want to do is make sure we have a guarantee of supply," she told reporters in Perth.

"A lot of our defence equipment and capability actually uses rare earths in its production."

The key issue for Australia, the US and other allies "is the continuity and guarantee of supply of these rare earths and tech metals as they're now called is an issue of national importance", she said.

Jeffrey Wilson, head of research at the Perth USAsia Centre, said there is roughly US$350 million global trade in rare earths per year, with China also having a disproportionate share of processed products such as carbonates and magnets.

In the case of dysprosium -- which can be used in magnets for electric vehicles or nuclear reactor rods -- it is 100 percent.

"China's near monopoly means there's no real genuine or reliable international market for rare earths trade," Wilson said.

"Its outsize market power also gives the Chinese government considerable scope to control and shape global trade patterns," he added.

Reynolds' comments followed news of a deal between German industrial giant Thyssenkrupp and a mining company developing a rare earths project in northern Australia.

Sydney-listed Northern Minerals announced Thyssenkrupp Materials Trading would take 100 percent of the heavy rare earth carbonate from its Aus$56 million Browns Range pilot plant project.

Northern Minerals had earlier terminated a two-year-old agreement with a Chinese firm.

The Australian company aims to develop the world's first significant producer of dysprosium outside of China.

str-arb/dm/dan

THYSSENKRUPP

Related Links
Space Technology News - Applications and Research

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The Space Media Network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceMediaNetwork Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceMediaNetwork Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Could Mexico cactus solve world's plastics problem?
Guadalajara, Mexico (AFP) Aug 7, 2019
Mexico's prickly pear cactus, which is emblazoned on the country's flag, could soon play a new and innovative role in the production of biodegradable plastics. A packaging material that is made from the plant has been developed by a Mexican researcher and is offering a promising solution to one of the world's biggest pollution conundrums. "The pulp is strained to obtain a juice that I then use," said Sandra Pascoe, who developed the product and works at the Atemajac Valley University in the west ... read more