Australia challenges China in mining for essential elements - Uk Tech News Blog
Australia challenges China in mining for essential elements - Uk Tech News Blog
In the blood red dust of central Australia, mining firm Arafura is planning to build a mine and processing facility for highly sought-after elements.
Located 80 miles north of Alice Springs, the Nolans Project will be in one of the hottest and driest parts of the country.
Despite the extreme conditions, Arafura believes the investment will be worth it. The planned mine and processing facility could satisfy up to 5% of global demand for neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr), which are used in high-power magnets.
They are two of a group of so-called rare earth elements, that are essential to the electronics industry.
NdPr, europium, terbium and other rare earth metals that were once barely heard of are now commonplace in the manufacture of phone touchscreens, wind turbines and other modern technologies.
The mining of these minerals is an industry currently dominated by China, but geopolitical and trade forces are at work that could reshape the international market.
Australia, a superpower exporter of iron ore and coal with rich mining traditions believes it is well-placed to join the race to exploit minerals that provide critical parts for electric vehicles and wind turbines.
"This could certainly be a game-changer for Australia. We are relatively well-endowed in rare earth elements," says Gavin Lockyer, managing director of Arafura Resources.
"This could really put Australia front and centre in the renewable sector.
"It is relatively easy to discover a rare earths deposit. What is difficult is finding a deposit that has economic quantities of the valuable materials."
Rare earths are a collection of more than a dozen elements on the periodic table. They are not particularly rare, but actually fairly plentiful in the Earth's crust.
Geoscience Australia, a government research agency, says they have broad industrial, medical, domestic and strategic applications "because of their unique catalytic, nuclear, electrical, magnetic and luminescent properties".
They are used in "magnets and super magnets, motors, metal alloys, electronic and computing equipment, batteries, catalytic converters, petroleum refining, medical imaging and lasers".
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