Sweden and Turkey Find Massive Rare Earth Deposits, Threatening China
Sweden and Turkey announced large discoveries of rare earth minerals this month. Sweden’s discovery in particular could be a major step toward breaking Chinese dominance in the rare earth industry. | Rare earth minerals are used in numerous high-tech products, notably including “green energy” systems and electric vehicles (EV). Efforts by Western governments to forcibly transition their economies to wind turbines, solar power, and electric cars have dramatically increased the demand for these minerals and China is the dominant supplier. ● Communist China has a history of using economic leverage to achieve its authoritarian political goals and it does not particularly care what environmental or human rights activists think about the ecological impact or labor policies of its mining operations.
■ Norway Discovers Abundance of Costly Rare Earths on Its Seabed (01/31/23)