RARE EARTH ELEMENTSRare-Earth Processing Must Be a Strategic Priority for Australia
There are well over 3,000 items of U.S. military equipment requiring rare earth elements (REEs), including crewed and uncrewed aircraft, satellites, nuclear weapons, missiles, surface warships and submarines, advanced radars and combat systems, and army vehicles such as tanks. REEs are also essential to green technology. China’s near global monopoly over the processing of these minerals is becoming increasingly worrisome.
As one of Australia’s most experienced past defense ministers, Kim Beazley has strategic issues still front of mind. He brought this strategic lens with him when he became governor of Western Australia and used the weight of that position to drive discussion on the strategic importance to the nation and its allies of the rare earths and other materials being mined in Australia.
He’s alarmed about China’s near global monopoly over the processing of these minerals that are becoming increasingly crucial for both the manufacture of military equipment and the efficiency of green technology, such as electric vehicles, to reduce emissions in the face of climate change.
Beazley notes that advanced weapons systems that nations such as Australia will rely on to give them an edge in deterrence or in conflict can’t be manufactured without rare earths.
The well over 3,000 items of U.S. military equipment requiring rare earths include crewed and uncrewed aircraft, satellites, nuclear weapons, missiles, surface warships and submarines, advanced radars and combat systems, and army vehicles such as tanks.
Next week, ASPI and the Australian National University will co-host a conference on rare earths at which the minister for resources and northern Australia, Madeleine King, will be a keynote speaker. Developing critical resources is a strong focus of the minister’s portfolio.
Beazley tells The Strategist that a guaranteed supply of processed rare earths will be vital to manufacture the high-end capabilities to be developed under the AUKUS security partnership involving Australia, the UK and the US. Those capabilities range from nuclear-powered submarines to cyber capabilities, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, hypersonics, standoff strike weapons and undersea technology.
A key Australian contribution will be providing those critical minerals, Beazley says, but Australia is placing too much emphasis on opportunities to export the raw materials and not enough on its own needs.
The rare earths comprise 17 elements that can dramatically enhance the magnetic properties, luminescence, catalytic characteristics and strength of metal components. Processing them is much more complex than dealing with iron ore, gold or uranium.
As Beazley gathered information from local and international experts, scientists described these minerals as the ‘vitamins of technology’ and the oxygen of our age.
Among the better known examples are neodymium and praseodymium used in magnets. The hydrogen industry uses lanthanum.
