India, Australia unite to challenge China's rare earth reign

South China Morning Post

3 days ago

In the race to secure the building blocks of tomorrow's technology,
India and
Australia are edging ever closer to a strategic minerals partnership, positioning themselves as a counterweight to China's dominance.
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Negotiations are ongoing, with both nations exploring avenues to build upon their critical minerals investment partnership – launched in 2022 – to establish joint ventures that could encompass not only sourcing but also collaborative processing of these elements that are essential to the automotive, electronics and defence sectors.
Rare earths – a group of 17 elements used in the manufacture of much modern technology – are, despite their name, relatively plentiful. But they are difficult and expensive to isolate, especially the coveted heavy rare earths such as terbium that command premium prices.
Australia has in recent years positioned itself as a leading alternative supplier of critical minerals, seeking to break
China's stranglehold on the global market. At the same time, India has reportedly been ramping up diplomatic efforts to fortify its own rare earth supply chains.
Workers transport soil containing rare earth elements for export at a port in China's Jiangsu province. Photo: Reuters
China accounts for more than 60 per cent of global rare earth mining and about 90 per cent of processing output.