Rare Earth : state of play of a sectorial and technological watch

Sometimes dubbed the "vitamins of the modern age , rare earths are particularly strategic resources, as entire sectors of our economy depend on them. Indeed, how can we imagine doing without them today, when electric mobility, smartphones, computers and wind turbines use them in "abundance"?

Our modern society's dependence on rare earths is a problem made all the more complex by the fact that their extraction is difficult and polluting, and that resources are very unevenly distributed across the globe. According to current knowledge, China, Russia, Brazil and Vietnam account for almost 90% of the world's rare earth reserves, and China is the world's leading producer.

In 2010, China's near-monopoly situation led to the first rare earths crisis, when China introduced restrictive measures on exports of these resources and suspended shipments to Japan, following a political dispute.

The rare earths crisis had the merit of revealing the urgent need to diversify supplies. This led to an 18-fold increase in investment in the mining export sector, and projects to explore, open or re-open mining sites have since proliferated. .

But beyond the extraction of rare earths, which remains polluting and difficult, recycling projects have sprung up just about everywhere, notably in Japan. and more recently in Canada and Europe.

This article provides an overview of rare earths. It covers issues, markets, industrial applications, key players and presents the main recycling projects.