A Japanese research vessel began a historic voyage to attempt to dig deep-sea rare earths at a depth of 6,000m to curb dependence on China.
The scientific drilling boat called the Chikyu left Shimizu Port in Shizuoka around 9am local time yesterday for the remote island of Minami Torishima in the Pacific, where surrounding waters are believed to contain a rich trove of valuable minerals.
The test cruise comes as China – by far the world’s biggest supplier of rare earths – ramps up pressure on its neighbour after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in November that Tokyo could react militarily to an attack on Taiwan.
Beijing claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to seize it by force if necessary.
Chikyu’s voyage, delayed by one day due to bad weather, could lead to domestic production of rare earths, said Shoichi Ishii, programme director at the Cabinet Office.
“We are considering diversifying our procurement sources and avoiding excessive reliance on specific countries,” he told reporters at the port as the ship prepared to leave.
“One approach I believe could be pursued is establishing a process to achieve domestic production of rare earths,” he said.
Rare earths – 17 metals difficult to extract from the Earth’s crust – are used in everything from electric vehicles to hard drives, wind turbines and missiles.
The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology has touted the test as the world’s first at such depths.
The area around Minami Torishima, which is in Japan’s economic waters, is estimated to contain more than 16 million tonnes of rare earths, which the Nikkei business daily says is the third-largest reserve globally.
These rich deposits contain an estimated 730 years’ worth of dysprosium, used in high-strength magnets in phones and electric cars, and 780 years’ worth of yttrium, used in lasers, Nikkei added. — AFP
