U.S. consumers of rare earths including makers of magnets used in electric vehicles, drones and robots are likely to scramble for supply of the minerals should China curb exports as the trade war deepens. Here’s a list of alternative exporters that American manufacturers may turn to for rare earth supply:
Australia
The largest miner behind China boosted output last year to 20,000 metric tons, from 19,000 tons a year earlier, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Australia is home to the mine run by Lynas Corp., the largest rare earths producer outside of China. The company said last week it plans to almost double output of the rare earths neodymium and praseodymium by 2025 and will expand its processing capacity.
It also plans to help fill the shortfall in the U.S. through a joint venture with Blue Line Corp (NYSE:). that will build a plant to process the commodities in Texas.
Estonia
This European country is the second-largest supplier to the U.S., accounting for 6% of the imports of the mineral, according to USGS. It is also host to Neo Performance Materials Inc.’s Silmet facility, which has the capacity to produce 2,500 tons of rare earth products, according to a company filing.
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