- Sep 19, 2011
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- 900
Thorium being mildly radioactive. Yes. But at this point, we have regulations against thorium that make it really costly to mine them here. So, our mines are a lot more difficult to mine. China has its own rare earth deposits, and China has done this several times before — they drop the price and they put all the other mines out of business.
Why the US buys all its rare earth metals from China - Marketplace
So why over the years has the USA allowed China to be the leader in rare earth mining?
1. China Mine production: 120,000 MT
As mentioned, China has dominated rare earths production for a number of years. In 2018, its domestic output of 120,000 MT was up from 105,000 MT the previous year.
3. United States Mine production: 15,000 MT
The US produced 15,000 MT of rare earths in 2018, up from no production the previous year.
So why didn't other Presidents get the USA back into the rare earth mining as President Trump did in 2018? So why is that so critical?
The below lists shows military uses..
Rare Earth Elements (REE): Why are they strategically important?
Why the US buys all its rare earth metals from China - Marketplace
So why over the years has the USA allowed China to be the leader in rare earth mining?
1. China Mine production: 120,000 MT
As mentioned, China has dominated rare earths production for a number of years. In 2018, its domestic output of 120,000 MT was up from 105,000 MT the previous year.
3. United States Mine production: 15,000 MT
The US produced 15,000 MT of rare earths in 2018, up from no production the previous year.
So why didn't other Presidents get the USA back into the rare earth mining as President Trump did in 2018? So why is that so critical?
The below lists shows military uses..
Rare Earth Elements (REE): Why are they strategically important?
