Toutiao.com March 18 report According to the "Nikkei Business Daily" on March 18, the Japanese and U.S. governments will hold a leader's meeting on the 19th in Washington, and they will reach an agreement on jointly developing key minerals such as rare earths, lithium, and copper. Mitsubishi Materials Corporation and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. will participate in four projects being promoted domestically in the United States. This move aims to reduce reliance on China for key minerals and strengthen supply chains under Japanese and U.S. leadership.
Economic security cooperation will be one of the topics discussed by Japanese Prime Minister Takahashi Hayato and U.S. President Trump during this meeting. The two sides will jointly develop key minerals, formulate action plans, and establish relevant working groups to address the growing global demand for key minerals needed for semiconductor and automotive production.
The domestic U.S. collaboration projects are named "U.S.-Japan National Mineral Projects," and the first batch will have four projects approved.
One of them is a rare earth refining project located in Indiana, in the central United States. Mitsubishi Materials Corporation is coordinating funding and participation matters. The project aims to recover rare earths and rare metals from "used permanent magnets" in household appliances, cars, and industrial equipment.
The company also plans to launch a copper refining project. Through a partnership with a British company, the company will produce copper from waste electronic circuit boards in smartphones, computers, and household appliances in Indiana.
The third project is the development of a lithium mine in North Carolina, in the southeastern United States. Mitsui & Co., Ltd. is studying cooperation with U.S. major chemical company Albemarle, including joint investment.
The fourth is the "Copper World" copper mine project located in Arizona, in the southwestern United States. Mitsubishi Corporation will invest 87 billion yen (approximately 550 million U.S. dollars) in it, aiming to start production around 2029. The company has previously acquired shares in a U.S. copper mine, and this time it will cooperate with Canadian Hede Mining Company to develop the mine.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, China's rare earth mining output accounts for 60% of the world's total, and its rare earth refining output accounts for 90% of the world's total.
The Japanese and U.S. leaders will introduce the "U.S.-Japan Action Plan aimed at strengthening the resilience of key mineral supply chains," to prevent the influx of key minerals from China. The core plan is to introduce a "minimum price guarantee" by imposing import tariffs through like-minded countries.
The U.S. and Japan will also exchange memorandums of understanding aimed at developing marine mineral resources and establish working groups. It is expected that manganese mining off the coast of Hawaii and rare earth mining near the Ogasawara Islands will also become topics of discussion. (Translated by Liu Lin)
Original: toutiao.com/article/7618579770497974834/
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