August 17, 2026

AI Rare Earth Minerals

China Hits U.S., Europe With New Rare Earths Export Controls– legalinsurrection.com

pgnewser July 30, 2026 0

China Hits U.S., Europe With New Rare Earths Export Controls– legalinsurrection.com
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EXCERPT:

Early this year, the Trump administration unveiled a new minerals stockpile initiative called “Project Vault,” which prioritizes the development of mines and processing operations for more than 50 minerals deemed critical.

This move comes on top of Trump’s pursuit of new alliances to challenge China’s control over these essential resources. Additionally, the administration has been expediting mine openings, supporting new smelting operations, and exploring deep-sea options for these resources.

These developments are likely not making Chinese officials happy. Subsequently, it should not come as a surprise that China has now imposed new export controls on rare earths bound for this country.

China added MP Materials (MP.N) and USA Rare Earth (USAR.O) as well as eight other ​U.S. entities it said are linked to the U.S. military to its export ‌control list in retaliation for Washington placing several Chinese companies under restrictions this month.

Aveox, a motor manufacturer for mission-critical applications, was also among those placed on the list, which halts Chinese dual-use exports to the companies.

Pentagon-backed ​MP Materials, which operates the only active rare earth mine in the U.S., and ​USA Rare Earth are both involved in the mine-to-magnet supply chain.

USA Rare ⁠Earth said it did not have any comment on the matter. MP Materials and Aveox were ​not available for comment outside of business hours.

The US backs a South Africa project to extract rare earths despite a diplomatic clash– abcnews.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

News Source
EXCERPT:

PHALABORWA, South Africa — Two enormous sandlike dunes at an old chemical processing plant in South Africa are at the center of an exploratory U.S.-backed project to extract highly sought-after rare earth elements from industrial mining waste.

The Phalaborwa Rare Earths Project has U.S. support through a $50 million equity investment by the government’s International Development Finance Corporation and is part of accelerated U.S. efforts to reduce reliance on economic rival China for the minerals crucial for making electronic devices, robotics, defense systems, electric vehicles and other high-tech products.

Countries have identified dozens of minerals, including copper, cobalt, lithium and nickel, as critical because they are essential for new technologies. The 17 rare earth elements are a subset of them.

President Donald Trump has made expanding U.S. access to critical minerals, including rare earth elements, a central policy to counter China. The Trump administration said this year it will deploy nearly $12 billion to create its own strategic reserve.