MalayMail/Reuters-Sept 12
Malaysia will develop a policy to ban exports of rare earth raw materials to “avoid exploitation and loss of resources”, its prime minister said on Monday. Rare earths are a group of 17 elements used in products from lasers and military equipment to magnets found in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and consumer electronics, such as smartphones. The minerals are not uncommon in the earth’s crust, but deposits that are economically viable are more scarce. Separating them into the materials needed to produce permanent magnets used in critical products is also a complex process. Malaysia’s country’s reserve of rare earth minerals of 30,000 metric tons is only a fraction of the world’s supply and much smaller than the biggest source China, with an estimated 44 million tons of reserves. But yesterday’s move is the latest by a country to restrict exports of key mineral resources. Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths Ltd, the biggest producer of rare earths outside of China, has a plant in Malaysia to process concentrate that it gets from Australia. Malaysia has imposed restrictions on some of Lynas’ operations, citing concerns about the radiation levels from cracking and leaching, which Lynas has disputed. It was not immediately clear which exact rare earth product Malaysia’s ban would target. In Myanmar, mines in the Pangwa region of Kachin State, the country’s biggest source of rare earths, have been closed for inspections since September 4 for an unspecified period, causing a short-term. Indonesia has banned nickel ore exports since 2020 in an effort to maximize revenues through downstream processing of the mineral used in stainless steel and electric vehicle batteries. Another major nickel producer, the Philippines, in January was looking at taxing nickel ore exports to encourage investment in the downstream sectors within the country. Read more at: https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2023/09/12/malaysia-is-latest-in-asia-to-tighten-grip-on-key-minerals/90333
