MIGHT, Universities Collaborate To Advance REE As Malaysia's Next Flagship Industry
MIGHT President and Chief Executive Officer Rushdi Abdul Rahim said the collaboration with Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK) and Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah (UMPSA) was also a major step for Malaysia to establish technology sovereignty in the area with an interconnected ecosystem.
'The initiative also aims to shape national priorities on REE, including talent development and capability building, knowledge exchange, research expertise and technical resources to support mutual research, innovation, and capacity-building initiatives,' he was quoted as saying in a statement issued by MIGHT.
The tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for strategic cooperation was signed today by Rushdi on behalf of MIGHT, while vice-chancellors Prof Dr Arham Abdullah and Prof Dr Yatimah Alias represented UMK and UMPSA, respectively.
The three-year collaboration aims to boost national-level research initiatives and enhance academic curricula and training programmes in REE and advanced materials. These will focus on innovations with strong potential for intellectual property generation and future commercialisation.
According to the statement, Malaysia possesses significant REE resources, estimated at 16.1 million metric tonnes of non-radioactive REEs (NR-REEs), valued at RM1 trillion, positioning the country among the leaders in the Southeast Asian region alongside Vietnam and Myanmar.
It said by the year 2030, the expected downstream production of Malaysia's non-radioactive REEs is projected to generate RM13.59 billion in revenue, primarily from the manufacturing of super magnets and electric motors.
In the same statement, Prof Yatimah noted that such projections raise concerns regarding sustainability, supply chain resilience, and environmental impact, thus calling for a more responsible path for REE industry development.
'Since 2013, UMPSA's Centre for Sustainability of Mineral and Resource Recovery Technology (SMAaRRT) has been developing capabilities across the full REE value chain, ranging from soil leaching, solvent extraction, impurity removal to pilot-scale technology validation.
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