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The term “rare earths” might suggest scarcity, but these elements are more abundant than their name implies.
Rare earth elements are crucial components in a wide array of modern technologies, including consumer electronics, military equipment, electric vehicles, medical devices, and robotics.
The extraction and processing of these elements, however, come with significant costs, labor demands, and environmental concerns.
Source: SBS News
Source: SBS News
Most countries have left the work to China, which Vivoda says emerged as a key player in the 1990s.
In April, Albanese announced an initial investment of $1.2 billion to set up a strategic reserve of critical minerals, including rare earths, which he described as key to Australia’s national security “in a time of global uncertainty”.
Farmers gathered this month to protest against a pipeline to enable the Donald Mineral Sands project, south-east of Minyip in Victoria. Source: Supplied
The government has also agreed to loan over $2.6 billion to two firms to establish separate refineries — Arafura Rare Earths mine in the Northern Territory and Iluka Resources in Western Australia.
