RARE EARTH ELEMENTS

Rare earth elements (REEs), also referred to as rare-earth oxides (REOs) are 17 elements primarily recovered from a handful of minerals. These minerals are bastnaesite (or bastnäsite), loparite, lateritic ion adsorption clays, monazite and xenotime. In 2022, rare earth elements were mined and processed at the Mountain Pass mine, in California. Bastnaesite was the mine’s primary product, from a Precambrian carbonatite deposit. REEs have applications across a wide range of industries and products. Products with REE components include cell phones, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners, and nuclear control rods. Wind turbines can include up to 60 kg of dysprosium and 372 kg of neodymium. Hybrid and electricvehicle (EV) batteries can include up to 11.3 kg of various REEs. REEs are also used in crude oil refining, as polishing compounds, glass additives, and ceramics. Permanent magnets developed from REEs are used in an array of medical devices like pacemakers, insulin pumps and sleepapnea machines. Additional applications include technology and equipment utilized by the U.S, Department of Defense such as Terfenol-D used in stealth technology, precision-guided munitions, radar systems, satellites and avionics. Production and reserves The global production of REOs continued an upward trend in 2022. Figure 1 shows that U.S. production has increased over the past few years from 15 kt to 43 kt of REOs in 2022. China remains the largest producer, producing 210 kt of REOs in the previous year. This is approximately 70 percent of the total world production of REOs. Over the past five years, the total contribution from China has decreased from 80 percent to 70 percent because of a significant increase in REO production by other countries. Table 1 shows the statistics on REO production and minable reserves. Countries like China, Vietnam, Russia and Brazil have the world’s largest reserves of REOs. In North America, reserves are estimated to be 1.8 Mt in the United States and about 0.8 Mt in Canada. Figure 1 Rare earth production worldwide. Figure 2 Neodymium, terbium and dysprosium prices, 2018-2022. Imports, exports and apparent consumption Imports, exports and apparent consumption of rare earth compounds and metals increased domestically from 2021. The United States imported approximately 11.9 kt in the form of either compounds or metals. China was the primary import source at approximately 74 percent. The primary U.S. exports of ores, compounds and metals were approximately 45.7 kt, up 10 kt from 2021. Apparent consumption, defined as production plus imports less exports, increased approximately 35 percent, a significant increase in the last seven years. The United States was more than 95 percent net import reliant as a percentage of apparent consumption of compounds and metals. Prices and economics In 2022, most REO prices stayed steady. The average estimated prices for cerium, europium, lanthanum and mischmetal did not change significantly. As shown in Fig. 2, the prices of neodymium, terbium and dysprosium oxides increased significantly in the past few years. Neodymium prices were stable at around $50/kg for a few years but increased to $130/kg in the last year. Terbium prices continuously increased, and the average price reached $1,300/kg. The average price of dysprosium reached $390/kg. The trade balance between the United States and the rest of the world in REOs, compounds and metals stood at $200 million (net imports) in 2022, representing a 25 percent increase from $160 million in 2021. Resources and recycling REEs are not as rare as their name suggests, and they are generally found to be relatively abundant in the Earth’s crust. However, mineable and recoverable quantities are less common than for most other mineral commodities. Rare earth resources are generally categorized as alkaline, carbonatites, igneous systems, ion-adsorption clay deposits, and monazitexenotime- bearing placer deposits. Light REEs are mostly recovered from carbonatites and placer deposits. Ion-adsorption clays are the major source of heavy REEs. Recycling is expected to increase in the future, driven by government regulation and economics. There are few substitutes for rare earth oxides for their various applications, those substitutes generally are considered less effective when used. Table 1 Global mine production and reserves in metric tons. Trends and outlook Supply-chain issues continue to act as a barrier to market growth. However, with growing demand from emerging economies, advances in green technology, and increasing aerospace applications, the REE market compound annual growth rate is projected to increase by 4 percent over the next five years. China is projected to remain the top producer, occupying more than half of the market, and as a consequence making the global REE market sensitive to the health of its manufacturing sector. Demand for magnets seems to be disproportionally higher than other REE applications. A vast majority of automakers use neodymium-incorporated permanent magnet motors, with increased use projected for 2023. Increased demand and large investments in medical equipment across the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and Africa are projected to drive magnet growth and, by extension, REE use.

RARE EARTH ELEMENTS

Authored by:
Himesh Patel

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China demands copper supply commitments for Anglo Teck merger approval, sources say

Leaders in mining excellence honored by NMA, federal agencies

To view the past issues of the UCA magazine you must be a member of SME/UCA.

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