Rare earths: when France needs to be a strategist

Last modified by the author on 16/06/2016 - 14:59
Rare earths: when France needs to be a strategist
Photo credit: Rhodia - "Rare earths"

What are rare earths, strategic metals and critical metals used for? What is the geopolitical, economic context? What stance should France take? The OPECST provides many answers to these questions and has made fourteen proposals on the subject.

In February 2014 the parliamentary office for the assessment of scientific and technological choices (Office parlementaire d'évaluation des choix scientifiques et technologiques - OPECST) received a request for a study on the strategic issues surrounding rare earths, to help strengthen the competitiveness of the French economy.

Parliamentarians Delphine Bataille and Patrick Hetzel, in charge of the study on behalf of OPECST, sought to answer three huge questions: What are rare earths, strategic metals and critical metals? What problems need to be solved? How can they be solved?

They have just delivered their report.

Note: as the theme of rare earths and solutions to avoid shortages are very close to those that might apply to strategic and critical raw materials, the study was extended to include strategic and critical raw materials.

Specific characteristics and a rapidly growing range of uses

Rare earths are seventeen elements in the periodic table, of which the most used are cerium, lanthanum and neodymium. They can be classified into light rare earth elements (LREE) and heavy rare earth elements (HREE), the latter having the most advantageous properties.

Note: the seventeen elements known as rare earths are scandium, yttrium, lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, promethium, samarium, europium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium and lutetium.

Rare earths have f electrons which give them their particular optical and magnetic properties. Generally, they are used in the manufacture of permanent magnets (such as can be found in wind turbines or cars), catalytic converters, cell phone batteries and phosphors in energy-saving bulbs. They also have many applications in the health field (medicines, markers, contrast agents in MRI, etc.).

They are often contained in ores, so need to be separated and purified, except for certain applications. They may be separated by methods such as hydrometallurgy pyrometallurgy or fine extractive or separative chemical processes, which require great expertise. The authors make the point that a very high-level hydrometallurgical laboratory is being developed in France.

On the environmental side, the pollution associated with rare earths is in particular related to the radioactivity of the ore and to the fact that processing them requires large amounts of water.

Chinese domination

While there are very many, sometimes very large, light earth deposits distributed throughout many countries, heavy earth deposits are rarer and smaller.

While rare earths correspond to growing needs in many sectors, the report notes the undeniable leadership of China in terms of production. This is because China has 50% of global reserves and currently produces 90% of rare earths. In the north, LREEs (lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium and samarium) are extracted, while in the south it is mainly HREEs (yttrium, europium, gadolinium particular) that are mined, in hygiene and environmental conditions that are termed "questionable": the report mentions mountains collapsing because of solvents, and fields sprayed with acid.

Linking the environmental problem to the existence of illegal mines, China wants to restructure its rare earth industry, comply with WTO requirements and develop it into a complete industrial sector (extraction, separation, purification, etc.).

Supply from outside China is negligible, coming from only a few countries such as the United States, some states of the European Union, Australia and Malaysia.

Unlike Europe, Japan, which has no raw materials, invests in foreign mines by acquiring stakes in them or by buying them, a practice also shared by China and Korea.

Overall, depending on whether we consider the situation in China, outside of China or globally, the trend is the same: only a few projects will be brought to fruition because profitability in this area is uncertain.

Highly dependent on technological developments

The report emphasizes the fact that the use of rare earth depends on existing technologies and how they develop.

For example, some manufacturers might choose a technology without rare earths to guard against the risk of shortages or because of concerns about the economic, social and environmental acceptability of products.

A tight market

The development of the rare earth and strategic and critical raw material markets is a source of some concern according to the authors of the report, who note the following factors:

  • the development of user technologies,
  • the growing demand from emerging countries which is difficult to control,
  • a geographically-limited supply,
  • technological developments, sources of uncertainty.

The keys to a proactive policy

Several raw materials including rare earths, are of strategic interest for countries and may be critical for industry. Rare earths, which come under the European Union's "raw materials" initiative, feature in its list of critical raw materials. As for France, it does not have its own list and therefore refers to the list drawn up by the Union. However, the report recalls the work done on the subject by the French geological and mining research office (Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières - BRGM) (see analyses available at www.mineralinfo.fr).

According to the report, a proactive policy is based on three types of solutions: those that depend on companies, those that depend on the training and research system and those that depend on the state.

The report therefore explores industrial solutions such as recycling and substitution ("hesitant"), those concerning training ("needing revitalizing") and research (needing further support and encouragement).

The authors continue with the possibility of defining a mining and metallurgical strategy based on renewed efforts in exploration and mining, and also on defining a credible and acceptable mining project.

Note: according to the report, apart from gold from Guyana, nickel from New Caledonia and the cobalt it contains, there has been no metal production in France for twenty years.

The authors go over France's little-known mineral potential, the importance of having an updated mining inventory, the applicable regulations and the acceptability of projects. In addition, according to parliamentarians, an ambitious mining project can only develop in France from the concept of responsible mines. They refer to the examples of Sweden and Finland, and also call for a rapid modernization (!) of the mining code.

Last but not least, the report also refers to the issue of building strategic stocks which is being considered in France, and the role of French economic diplomacy. On this last point, the report states that tools can be implemented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, by Business France and by the Treasury department of the Ministry of Finance. The report concludes with an analysis of the raw material policy of the Union.

The 14 proposals arising from the report

The following proposals result from this study:

  • Define a mining policy for France based on the identification of needs and resources, the revival of exploration, a new mining inventory and thinking on modern, responsible mining
  • Define a rare earth and strategic and critical raw material strategy, as have Sweden, Finland and Japan.
  • Developing the French mining industry, which is essential for its industrial and economic impact and its contribution to employment, growth and innovation.
  • Secure supplies of strategic and critical raw materials by active international cooperation.
  • Consider storing strategic and critical raw materials
  • Develop recycling and finding substitutes for strategic and critical raw materials.
  • Harmonize legislation at European level on the transport of waste to facilitate recycling.
  • Provide more finding for research into rare earths and strategic and critical raw materials, so that they can have a significant impact. Clearly identify the funding envisaged in the programmes of the French national research agency (Agence nationale de la recherche - ANR) and the future investment programme (Programme d'investissements d'avenir - PIA) Improve their complementarity with European funding
  • Revive training in mining activities, particularly in the different levels, of French higher education to allow especially valuable know-how to be maintained and developed.
  • Develop business, regulatory and media intelligence on strategic and critical raw materials
  • Instruct the BRGM to better identify the needs for strategic and critical raw materials and to define the technical and financial arrangements for storing them. Entrust it with observing rare earths and strategic and critical raw materials, to improve knowledge of their status in France, Europe and throughout the world, and carry out technology intelligence
  • Create a public investment bank at European level that would help European companies to invest abroad in order to obtain products at stable prices, and secure their long-term supply of critical raw materials as defined in the European list
  • Develop international cooperation to measure and control the environmental impact of exploration, mining and the exploitation of deep-sea resources
  • Provide more resources for Ifremer so that it can fully engage in cooperation with Japan in research into, and the exploitation of deep-sea resources, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region where France is very much present.

Author: Camille Vinit-Guelpa, Code permanent Environnement et nuisances (French permanent environment and pollution code)

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