Russia is late to the party, but it’s still preparing to enter the rare earths fray

Russia is looking to ramp up rare earths production but it’s late to the party and faces challenges along the way to establishing its position in the highly-lucrative global market, analysts say.

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week ordered his officials to complete a road map by Dec.1 “for the long-term development of the extraction and production of rare and rare earth metals.”

Moscow has fallen behind peers like China when it comes to the exploitation of its deposits of rare earth elements, which are mainly used to make high-strength magnets which are vital components in high-tech and energy industries, such as those making consumer electronics, electric vehicles and wind turbines.

A global scramble for rare earths is well underway with China’s dominance in the field creating geopolitical tensions and vulnerabilities for industries reliant on critical minerals.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimated in its latest report there were 110 million tonnes of deposits worldwide. Of those, 44 million tonnes are in China, followed by Brazil (with 21 million tonnes), India and Australia. Myanmar also has significant reserves of heavy rare earths, and is a top supplier to China, but the amount of reserves it holds is unknown.

While lagging behind the big players, Russia is still estimated to possess the fifth largest known reserves of rare earths, totalling 3.8 million tonnes, the USGS stated. That’s above the U.S. which is seen with 1.9 million tonnes.