Business Insider — Niobium: The Critical Strategic Metal That’s Only Mined Two Places On Earth — Investor interest in rare earth elements (REE) has exploded as of late, and for good reason. China controls up to 97% of the world supply of REEs, which are essential for use in modern technology.
Prices are soaring as China slashes export quotas and shows a willingness to use these materials as a political tool. Alarmed governments throughout the world are increasingly concerned about securing more reliable sources of critical materials for strategic and security purposes. But there are other rare minerals, outside of REEs, which are also crucial to economic and national security. Niobium, for example, is among the most critical, but has received little publicity.
That is quickly changing.
WikiLeaks recently released a governmental list of 300 key foreign infrastructures and resources that are vital to U.S. interests. One item that came up multiple times was Niobium.
Yet Niobium is not commonly known in the investment world. It is an element, a rare metal with anticorrosive properties. The demand and price for Niobium has increased dramatically over the past decade. It has a growing amount of applications, from computer screens and camera lenses to automobiles and railroad tracks. It is a strong metal, highly resistant to heat and wear, which is why gas pipelines must contain niobium. But its primary use is a steel hardener. Much of the imported Niobium goes toward the creation of superalloys for use in the aerospace industry and for military applications such as missiles and jets.
Due to its relevance in aerospace and defense, Niobium is considered a “strategic metal” by the U.S. government, meaning there are few or no substitutes for the metal’s essential use. Furthermore, of all strategic metals, Niobium is regarded as one of the most highly critical. But its supplies are considered potentially at risk. This is because only a few sources throughout the world produce the metal. Almost 90% of the world supply comes from Brazil. Nearly all of that comes from only one mine. Most of the rest comes from the Canadian Niobec Mine, owned by IAMGOLD (NYSE: IAG).
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Minerais rares: les USA exhortés à assurer leur approvisionnement (16-12-10) — Agence France Presse — WASHINGTON – Le département de l’Energie américain a exhorté mercredi les Etats-Unis à assurer leur approvisionnement à long terme en minerais rares, un marché très nettement dominé par la Chine et considéré comme crucial pour le développement des énergies renouvelables.
Le ministère a publié une étude intitulée “Stratégie pour les matériaux primordiaux”, qui porte sur 14 éléments chimiques rares essentiels pour “les éoliennes, les véhicules électriques, les cellules photovoltaïques et l’éclairage à basse consommation”.
Ces éléments sont disponibles dans le sol de nombreux pays, dont les Etats-Unis, qui auraient 13% des réserves mondiales, mais une seule société active dans ce secteur, Molycorp.
Mais la Chine (36% des réserves) a pris de l’avance et extrait actuellement 95% de la production mondiale. Or “faire démarrer de nouvelles mines exige de beaucoup anticiper et d’investir des montants considérables au départ”, a noté le département de l’Energie.
Realpolitik.tv
