China increased its mining quota for the first batch of rare earth by 27% from a year earlier, with demand for the strategic minerals unabated despite the pandemic.
The new quota for the first batch is 84,000 tons, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said in a statement Friday. That was compared to a captain of 66,000 tonnes for the first batch last year.
A further 81,000 tonnes of the minerals used in everything from electric vehicles to military hardware will be supplied to major producers, including Northern Rare Earth China’s high-tech group for rare earth smelting and separation, according to the ministry.
China typically produces two batches of rare earth quotas each year. Last year’s total reached a table 140,000 tonnes even when a pandemic of coronavirus broke global trade.
The country is also watching banning the sale of the technology needed to refine and clean rare earths to countries or companies that are seen as a threat to state security, said someone familiar with the matter.
– Supported by Charlie Zhu, and Amanda Wang