French Media: What Does France's National Rare Earth Plan Entail?

The Russia-Ukraine war has already made European countries realize the necessity of reducing dependence on foreign energy sources. The Iran conflict, particularly the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, has further elevated energy and raw material autonomy to an urgent priority for governments across the continent. Beyond oil and natural gas, rare earth elements—already monopolized by China—have become a major concern for Western nations. Under these circumstances, on May 5, France’s Minister of Economy and Industry announced the country’s “National Rare Earth Plan” during a visit to the Pyrenees region in southwestern France, touring the construction site of the Caremag factory. This facility will be Europe’s first rare earth recycling plant. So, what are the specific details of France’s National Rare Earth Plan? Can it alleviate reliance on Chinese rare earth imports?

Europe’s First Rare Earth Recycling Plant

The centerpiece of France’s National Rare Earth Plan is the Caremag (Caremag) plant located in the Pyrenees region. This project, under construction for over a year, is a joint venture between France and Japan, focused on refining rare earth elements and recycling so-called permanent magnets. Permanent magnets are widely used in electronics, electrical systems, machinery, transportation, medical devices, and everyday consumer goods. The Lyon-based startup Carester began construction of this rare earth recycling plant in March of last year, aiming to supply raw materials to the automotive and wind turbine industries.

The plant is scheduled to begin operations by late 2026 or early 2027. Once completed, it will become Europe’s first rare earth recycling facility and also the largest producer of separated heavy rare earths in the West. The plant plans to recycle 2,000 tons of permanent magnets annually, producing approximately 800 tons of light rare earth elements (neodymium and praseodymium). Additionally, it will process 5,000 tons of mineral concentrates, producing 600 tons of separated heavy rare earth elements (dysprosium oxide and terbium oxide)—accounting for about 15% of current global output. The project has received a total of €216 million in funding from both Japan and France. The Japanese partner, JOMC (Japan Oil, Metal and Energy Resources Agency), is a national public institution dedicated to metal and energy security.

Although France does not mine rare earths domestically, the government aims to produce them through recycling and refining. To achieve this goal, it relies heavily on this large-scale rare earth recycling initiative, which will source materials primarily from Europe, especially France. Furthermore, according to contracts already signed, the plant will also use mineral concentrates from Malaysia, South Africa, Canada, and Brazil. However, the company guarantees compliance with the highest environmental standards: no liquid wastewater will be discharged; ammonium nitrate—a byproduct of production—will be re-concentrated and sold as fertilizer; and 80% of direct CO₂ emissions will be captured and reused. The French Minister of Industry emphasized that the purpose of building this plant is not to extract rare earths but to recover and repurpose them.

In fact, France already has three industrial projects focused on recycling permanent magnets. In June of last year, MagREEsource, a startup based in Isère Department, launched Europe’s first pilot plant dedicated to recycling magnets into permanent magnets, with an annual capacity of 50 tons.

Preferred Tax and Business Policies

Beyond the Caremag rare earth recycling plant, France’s National Rare Earth Plan includes multiple tax and regulatory incentives. These include easing conditions for rare earth industry firms to obtain strategic project guarantees, enhancing competitiveness among French manufacturers, extending the green industry tax credit policy to 2028, and broadening its scope—from the current focus on wind power to all refining projects.

France also aims to promote the concept of “Made in Europe” motors, expecting this label to apply to future offshore wind tenders and to car manufacturers applying for aid under the “France 2030” program—those seeking eligibility must demonstrate such diversification.

According to the International Energy Agency, demand for rare earth elements used in manufacturing permanent magnets is expected to double by 2050, largely driven by strong demand for electric vehicles. The government has stated it is “willing to engage in discussions with commodity traders” to better secure supplies of critical minerals.

Reducing Rare Earth Mining Is Possible

Can France’s National Rare Earth Plan counteract China’s market monopoly? According to Guillaume Pitron, Deputy Researcher at the Institute for International and Strategic Relations, while it is important that the French government takes this crucial first step, it may struggle to challenge China’s dominance, as he believes France cannot bridge the gap accumulated over the past three decades within just a few years. Extracting and recycling rare earths not only requires substantial capital but also involves high energy consumption and pollution.

However, in January 2024, the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) launched a collective scientific assessment aimed at examining the use of rare earth elements from a circular economy perspective. In November of last year, the center conducted a comprehensive analysis of scientific knowledge regarding challenges and opportunities in responsible rare earth utilization, based on 4,100 scientific papers.

The analysis indicates that the mining process of rare earths and the resulting waste have been proven to pose environmental risks, thus necessitating a reduction in rare earth usage wherever possible. There are multiple ways to reduce rare earth consumption: substituting rare earths with other non-critical elements in materials, improving the efficiency of equipment using rare earths, and adopting more economical usage practices. Second, increasing the recycling of rare earth products is essential—because today’s innovative pretreatment and metallurgical technologies, along with short-cycle recycling processes, significantly reduce environmental impact and achieve high recovery rates. Third, developing new methods of rare earth extraction is vital, such as recovering rare earths from industrial and mining waste.

Source: rfi

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1864482831984732/

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