PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia has a 10-year headstart in rare earth element (REE) processing technology, which ensures that its sovereignty over the minerals is protected.
It is now critical that Malaysia guards its RM809bil worth of REE deposits and improves its technology for processing the minerals, says Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Chang Lih Kang (pic).
China currently dominates the REE processing industry, but Malaysia recently signed an agreement with the United States on rare earth.
The deal, signed during the recent Asean Summit, does not impose restrictions on Malaysia, Chang said after officiating the XThree Exploration Thorium and Rare-Earth Seminar titled “Securing the Future: Science, Strategy and Sustainability in the REE Industry” yesterday.
“We have the advantage of talent and a large deposit of REE in Malaysia.
“However, as we have a moratorium on raw material exports, we need to develop midstream and downstream products.
“We cannot have China controlling all the REE resources, as that could cause vulnerabilities in the global supply chain.
“We need to develop our own technology capacity on REE,” said Chang.
The exit clause in the deal with the United States was to promote openness, he said.
“If the US asks for more REE and we can’t produce it, there’s not much we can do.
“No restriction is imposed on any one country,” Chang added.
Last week, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and US President Donald Trump signed the deal, which stated that Malaysia is committed to ensuring no restrictions are imposed on the sale of rare earth magnets to the US.
