• Saskatchewan aims to become a major supplier of rare earth materials essential to the production of EVs.
It’s estimated that China currently controls 95 percent of the world's production and supply of rare earth metals. This near-monopoly allows it to dictate prices and create uncertainty for users by controlling exports.
Saskatchewan wants to have its say, and even compete with China.
Rare earth?
But what exactly are rare earth metals? Simply put, the term refers to a group of 17 chemical elements on the periodic table. They are crucial elements of many modern products, such as smartphones… and the batteries found in electric vehicles.
Despite the term, these elements are not particularly rare. But they are not found in concentrated amounts in the earth, making them difficult and costly to extract and separate.
Saskatchewan is aiming to compete with China to become North America's leading commercial source of replacement rare earth metals used in the manufacture of magnets for electric vehicles, among other things.vv
In developing its (SRC) Rare Earth Processing Centre, the Saskatchewan Research Council is betting on an increase in demand for these magnets over the next two years, due to demand from automakers and other manufacturers of original equipment.
Home to copper, potash and uranium mines, the province is known for its mining capabilities.
And as Automotive News reports, last year China imposed export controls on certain key metals such as germanium, gallium and antimony, forcing Western governments to look for alternatives.
SRC's rare earth processing facility has begun commercial-scale production and expects to reach a production target of 40 tonnes of rare earth metals per month by the end of the year. It will also produce 400 tonnes of NdPr metals (neodymium and praseodymium, the primary ingredients for making today's most powerful magnets, including those found in EVs) per year, enough to produce 500,000 electric vehicles, according to SRC. The plant has already signed agreements with potential customers in South Korea, Japan and the U.S.
Prices of rare earth metals such as neodymium and praseodymium fluctuate between $65,000 and $75,000 USD per tonne, with pricing levels determined by the Chinese government.
“Our aim is to remain competitive within the Asian metal price index. We are constantly looking to optimize our facilities using artificial intelligence applications to keep our processes efficient,” explains Muhammad Imran, SRC Vice President.
Automotive News also explains that some miners have demanded a higher price for metals produced outside China, arguing that Chinese metals are produced with low environmental and social standards.
This will be an issue to keep an eye on, because if Saskatchewan achieves its targets, it will become a very important player in the future of electrification.