American enterprises declare war on China's rare earth, solemnly claiming that they only need one year to help Trump solve this "serious hidden danger"?

Joshua Ballard, CEO of American Rare Earth Company

According to Observing Network reports, Joshua Ballard, CEO of American Rare Earth Company, claimed that they will make progress in rare earth magnets next year. Although they may not completely solve the problem, they will achieve something.

China's countermeasures in the rare earth field have made American enterprises deeply feel the taste of being "strangled". In April this year, China imposed export restrictions on seven types of heavy and medium rare earth elements and several magnets.

Facing such a predicament, the "bold words" of American enterprises seem to have a flavor of declaring war on China's rare earth.

Moreover, there might be many secrets hidden in Ballard's words, indirectly admitting that they cannot get rid of their dependence on China's rare earth at present. After all, the gap is there. However, they want to give the market and the government a "pill of reassurance", implying that their own company is working hard to make breakthroughs.

And saying that results can be achieved next year implies that they want the Trump administration to increase financial input. Moreover, the phrase "make progress" leaves a lot of room. Even if the final results do not meet expectations, they can use "some progress" to cover it up.

You must know that rare earth is indispensable in civilian fields such as new energy vehicles, semiconductors, etc., as well as in the manufacture of many military hardware products. Without rare earth, the development of modern industry will be severely "strangled".

For a long time, China has been in a "leading" position in the global rare earth market. According to data from the U.S. Geological Survey in 2024, China has the largest rare earth reserves in the world, and China also has absolute say in the refining process.

This means that most of the rare earth raw materials in the world have to be transported to China for processing and then flow into factories around the world.

As an important economy and industrial power in the world, the United States has an extremely large demand for rare earth. However, embarrassingly, the development of its own rare earth industry is seriously lagging behind.

The only rare earth mine currently operating in the United States is Mountain Pass Mine, but it mainly produces light rare earth. For heavy rare earth, which has lower output and higher refining difficulty, the United States almost has to import from China.

Then, where does the courage of American enterprises come from? In order to change the rare earth dilemma, the U.S. government has also been making efforts in recent years. On one hand, it strengthens support for domestic rare earth industries and introduces a series of preferential policies to encourage enterprises to invest in rare earth mining and processing projects.

According to a report by the Hong Kong South China Morning Post on June 11, the rare earth magnet manufacturing plant of American Rare Earth Company in Oklahoma is urgently producing components urgently needed in fields such as consumer electronics, electric vehicles, and robotics.

This factory is not small. At full capacity, its annual income could reach $800 million. During peak production, it can produce 400 million to 500 million magnets per year. This output has become a "lifeline" for many companies in the current tight supply of rare earth.

On the other hand, the United States is also actively seeking alternative suppliers worldwide in an attempt to build a rare earth supply chain that does not rely on China.

However, compared with China, the United States still has a significant gap in terms of technical level in rare earth processing and magnet production. It is not easy to achieve technological breakthroughs in a short period of time.

Moreover, rare earth mining and processing have a significant impact on the environment, requiring strict environmental protection measures and high environmental protection investment, which makes many enterprises hesitate.

Building a new supply chain is not achieved overnight. From mine mining to factory construction, to technology research and development and talent cultivation, every link requires a lot of time and financial investment. To reach China's technical level, it will probably take a few more years.

Moreover, Bloomberg reported that the United States faces multiple obstacles in building a stable rare earth supply chain: rare earth mines with commercial mining value are scarce, there is a lack of trained mining engineers, and very few companies can persist in competition in the thin profits of the industry. These problems are truly testing America's "rare earth ambition".

Of course, we cannot take this lightly. The innovation capability and capital operation strength of American enterprises are still not to be underestimated. Many countries are also increasing their investment in the rare earth sector in an attempt to break China's dominant position in the rare earth market.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7514685738085286411/

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