[ExI] not that rare earth (part 2 of at least 2)

[BillK]

On Tue, 28 Oct 2025 at 18:27, spike jones via extropy-chat
<extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
> >…A few days ago, I speculated that the invisible hand of capitalism would find alternative sources for rare earth elements.  Well the invisible hand did so.  There are other nations besides China which are advanced in chemical engineering, which have rare earth ore and which likewise have little concern over pollution or can deal with it effectively…There is a fun follow up to this post, to follow when I return.   spike>
> spike
> _______________________________________________


<https://www.businessinsider.com/china-rare-earth-monopoly-west-supply-chain-goldman-sachs-2025-10>
Quotes:
Breaking China's rare earth dominance could take a decade, Goldman Sachs says
By Huileng Tan   Oct 29, 2025

Rare earths and the powerful magnets made from them are centred in
China, giving Beijing a strategic edge in global industry and
diplomacy.

The West may need a decade to loosen China's iron grip on rare earths,
according to Goldman Sachs.
Beijing's control of 92% of refining and 98% of magnet production
gives it powerful leverage in global trade.
The West's push to rebuild rare-earth supply chains is lagging despite
the metals' strategic importance.

"It's going to take years to build up independent supply chains in the
West," he said, adding that it would take about 10 years to build a
mine and about five years to build a refinery.
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Some people might think that your suggestion of "Oh, well, we'll just
make do without these rare earths" would have occurred to the smartest
financiers in the West. Perhaps "make do" just isn't good enough when
facing opposition countries that have access to the best.
BillK