The G7 has reached a consensus: striving to reduce dependency on China for rare earths and permanent magnets to below 60% by 2030
According to sources cited by Bloomberg, G7 countries have agreed that no single country should supply more than 60% of the total rare earth imports by 2030, in an effort to reduce reliance on China.
One of the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity due to private conversations, said that during this week's G7 summit held in Évian-les-Bains, a small town in eastern France, leaders discussed plans to implement binding quotas for certain industrial sectors—particularly aimed at pressuring defense manufacturers to cut their dependence on China.
The source also noted that leaders committed to establishing a platform to collaboratively increase rare earth supplies through recycling and new mining projects. For other critical minerals, G7 leaders pledged to set specific targets by the end of the year.
In the "Declaration on Securing Critical Mineral Supply Chains" released by G7 leaders on Wednesday, they wrote: "We will closely cooperate with partner countries to advance production, processing, and recycling initiatives across the entire supply chain. Through demand aggregation and mobilizing public and private collective financing capacity, we will promote coordinated projects. To this end, we aim to significantly reduce our reliance on any single supplier outside the G7 and its partner countries for rare earths and permanent magnets to below 60% by 2030, and continue lowering it over time, striving to reach as low as 50% as soon as possible. For other critical minerals, we have tasked relevant ministers with establishing concrete targets to reduce such dependencies by the end of the year."
The declaration mentions: "We welcome progress made toward achieving these goals, particularly the announcement of 195 projects since early 2026—projects that have attracted €64 billion in investment from the G7 and partner countries, covering equity investments and take-or-pay agreements within the critical mineral value chain—as well as joint initiatives aimed at developing industrial capabilities in rare earths and permanent magnets."
The declaration further states: "To achieve these objectives and ensure long-term coordination, we have established the non-binding G7 Critical Minerals Resilience and Production Alliance, whose terms are attached to this declaration. This initiative builds upon the existing Critical Minerals Production Alliance and will be opened to like-minded partners after approval by participating countries. The alliance provides a comprehensive platform for cooperation between the G7 and its partners, aiming to strengthen diversification and resilience in critical mineral value chains and streamline existing initiatives related to critical raw materials."
The declaration continues: "To support the implementation of the above-mentioned G7 Critical Minerals Resilience and Production Alliance, the G7 Critical Minerals Cooperation Platform—operated jointly by the G7 and other platform members—will facilitate discussions, support data-driven decision-making, and enhance coordination among members. The platform will consult the International Energy Agency’s Critical Minerals Security Initiative and the OECD as appropriate, to provide analyses and data-driven assessments on market developments and supply chain vulnerabilities, promote information sharing on stockpiles, conduct emergency drills, and monitor progress on financing, diversification, and transparency commitments. We call on the IEA and OECD to provide data based on their expertise, enabling member states to identify market distortions and receive early warnings, thus allowing for coordinated responses."
The declaration also notes: "To better predict and manage supply crises and prevent price volatility, we commit to establishing a joint cooperative mechanism leveraging the International Energy Agency and its data platform. This mechanism will enable us to share data and early warning information on future market pressures or supply disruptions with G7 members and like-minded countries when necessary."
The declaration states: "We firmly believe that circular economy and alternatives are key to meeting the growing demand for critical minerals, securing their supply, and reducing environmental impacts. Therefore, we recognize the importance of promoting efficient design, reuse, repair, and remanufacturing of products and components rich in critical minerals. We will work to advance the recycling of critical minerals by supporting supply and demand for recycled critical minerals and building efficient, competitive markets for recycled raw materials—through specific economic and regulatory incentives such as requirements for recycled material content."
The declaration mentions: "We are committed to significantly increasing the recovery rate of critical raw materials and pledge to monitor and assess progress. We will strive to achieve targeted recycling goals for selected critical minerals or their derivatives by the end of the year. Our goal is to enhance overall recycling capacity by the end of 2030 so that it can meet a substantial portion of the annual consumption of G7 member countries."
One G7 official said that, amid a summit dominated by the U.S.-Iran peace agreement, the critical minerals plan was one of only a few issues where leaders could reach full consensus. Another official stated that all members agreed there is a need to diversify suppliers of critical minerals to lower the risk of supply disruptions.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters in Évian: "We have reached agreement in multiple forms to pursue closer cooperation in the field of critical raw materials. We had in-depth discussions with our guests on how to achieve diversification."
Given that many potential developers have delayed projects due to funding constraints, regulatory hurdles, social opposition, and technical setbacks, the 2030 deadline is likely an ambitious target. One official said that without setting quotas for certain industries—for example, defense—countries would be unlikely to achieve this goal.
Although most critical mineral markets are relatively small, individual projects can significantly boost global supply. However, increasing output in all critical mineral markets currently dominated by China requires substantial capital and technical expertise. Additionally, rare earth mining and refining are environmentally harmful, costly, and time-consuming, meaning that establishing alternative supply chains may take years.
A report from the International Energy Agency in 2025 pointed out that China controls about 70% of the global market for most critical mineral refining processes. In some specific materials, China’s dominance is even higher. The report notes that China produces 85% of globally processed cobalt and 99% of primary gallium.
Source: rfi
Original: toutiao.com/article/1868292363960328/
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