A strategic advantage with global implications

China’s dominance in crucial minerals is shaping the worldwide inexperienced transition—however at what value?

The battery in an electrical automotive and the magnets in wind generators depend on critical minerals managed by China. This offers the nation a strong function within the inexperienced transition, but it surely additionally creates challenges for the remainder of the world.

China’s function in crucial minerals

China has lengthy been the worldwide chief in producing rare earth elements—a bunch of 17 metals important for applied sciences like electrical automobile motors, wind turbinesand cell phones.

“China’s dominance gives it a strategic advantage but also exposes vulnerabilities for other nations,” says Gørild Heggelund, analysis professor on the Fridtjof Nansen Institute, Oslo, Norway. Whereas China controls over 60% of worldwide uncommon earth manufacturing, the nation is closely depending on imports for sure supplies, comparable to cobalt and lithium for batteries.

“Almost all the cobalt used in China comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo. This makes their supply chains vulnerable,” Heggelund explains. Nonetheless, China has secured its place by dominating the processing part, the place uncooked supplies are changed into usable elements.

“China’s focus on processing has allowed it to maintain control without owning all the mines,” she says. “But it has become reliant on imports for parts of its supply as domestic policies aim at restricting mining and processing to conserve resources and reduce environmental pollution.”

U.S.-China rivalry

The competitors between the U.S. and China extends to crucial minerals, turning them right into a key battleground within the race for inexperienced know-how.

“China’s technique of constructing whole worth chains in renewable energy will not be new—it began within the Nineties,” says Iselin Stensdal, a researcher on China on the Fridtjof Nansen Institute. China’s entry to uncooked supplies has been a cornerstone of its management in solar panelslithium batteries, and electrical autos. Whereas the U.S. is catching up, China stays forward in lots of key applied sciences.

Current political tensions have escalated. China lately banned the export of three crucial minerals to the U.S. in response to American efforts to limit Chinese language entry to superior know-how stating nationwide safety grounds.

“The rivalry between the U.S. and China is marked by a retaliatory approach, with both nations responding to each other’s actions through countermeasures,” explains Stensdal.

What it means for the world

China’s dominance presents a dilemma for nations worldwide. Whereas the world is determined by China for crucial supplies, this reliance additionally creates dangers.

Heggelund leads a venture geared toward serving to nations like Norway strike a steadiness: lowering dependency on China whereas constructing sustainable and aggressive provide chains. “We cannot completely decouple from China, but we can diversify our sources and learn from their strategies,” she concludes.

Supplied by Fridtjof Nansen Institute