Rare Earth News

Expert: Stockpiling not appropriate response to China export caps

As the European Union toys with the idea of stockpiling its rare earth element supply in response to the recent Chinese export restrictions, one French research group has raised concerns that stockpiling may not be the way to go, Reuters reports.

According to the news source, French chemicals group Rhodia says finding diverse supplies of the mineral through new rare earth mining projects is a much more pertinent response to the export caps.

"Creating strategic stocks of rare earths seems a little strange to me," said Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, former chief executive of Rhodia and current deputy CEO of Solvay, the product of the Belgian group's takeover of its French counterpart. " My belief is that in five or 10 years’ time we will have diversified again our resources."

Rhodia, a leading processor of rare earths, plans to find non-Chinese rare earth element sources by the end of 2011, the media outlet stated.

As processors around the world search for alternative rare earth sources, North America, and especially the Quebec and British Columbia provinces of Canada, are considered to have some of the world's leading mining operations, in terms of quality, outside of China.