CRS Reports Concerns over U.S. Dependence on China for Rare Earths
The Congressional Research Service has released a report stating that some members of Congress have expressed concern over U.S. acquisition of rare earth elements1 that are used in various components of defense weapon systems.
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According to the report, the U.S. was the leader in global production of rare earths from the 1960s to the 1980s. Since then, production of the world’s supply of rare earths has shifted almost entirely to China. China produces about 97% of rare earth oxides, is the only exporter of commercial quantities of rare earth refined metals, and is the majority producer of the world’s two strongest permanent rare earth magnets.
CRS states policymakers are not concerned that China has cut its rare earth exports and appears to be restricting the world’s access to rare earths, but that the U.S. has lost its domestic capacity to produce strategic and critical materials. Policymakers are concerned with the nearly total U.S. dependence on China for rare earth elements, including oxides and magnets, etc., and its implications for U.S. national security. The criticality and reliability of the rare earth element supply chain cuts across the manufacturing, defense, and science and technology sectors of the global economy.
1Rare earths are a collection of 17 elements on the periodic table, including a series of 15 elements beginning with atomic number 57 (lanthanum) and extending through number 71 (lutetium), as well as two other elements, yttrium and scandium, which have similar properties. These elements are referred to as “rare” because while they are relatively abundant in total quantity, they appear in low concentrations in the earth’s crust and economic extraction and processing is both difficult and costly.
(Note that in the 112th Congress, there have been four bills introduced regarding concerns about rare earth minerals. See ITT's Online Archives or 03/06/11, 02/28/11, and 04/07/11 news, 11050609, 11022814, and 11040704, for BP summaries of the bills.)
(CRS R41744, dated 03/31/11)