"Rare Earths: Break Free of Petroleum Dependency"

 By: Professor Dato' Dr. Ahmad Ibrahim, Tan Sri Omar Centre for STI Policy, UCSI University, Malaysia

W HEN China first stumbled on her rich deposits of rare earth elements, its leader Deng Xiao Peng proudly declared that the West may have oil,but China has rare earths. He had already proclaimed then that rare earths would one day replace oil as the driver of global energy. His forecast has been proven right. In a world economy posturing to move away from fossil fuels, powerful magnets based on rare earths have become indispensable in the electronics of global products and the race to tap the renewable fuel that supports a sustainable world. China wasted no time in bringing its wealth of rare earths to market. Thanks to their large investment in R&D, such environmental concerns are now history. China is now the leading producer and supplier of rare earths to the world. Inevitably, there is a feeling of insecurity in the West, with China controlling more than 90 per cent of the global supply of a critical metal like rare earths. It is unhealthy for one single country to hold the trump card, which determines the development of new energy for the world. This is also made worse by the fact that rare earths have been reported to be a critical material in the defence industry. It’s no surprise that there is active R&D in the world looking for alternatives. I know of many studies evaluating the combination of readily available metals to replace the rare earths. Malaysia has made the right move by bringing in that rare earth investment from Australia. Many in the West regard Lynas as strategic positioning for Malaysia. It is unfortunate that certain unscrupulous groups have been creating problems for the rare earths processing at Lynas. It’s not helping the country embrace a higher-value economy. As the sole largest supplier of rare earths outside of China, Lynas is now much sought after by investors to replicate their Kuantan operations in the West. It has been reported that technical personnel from Lynas are now actively involved in the setting up of a rare earths facility in Texas, the United States. 

    Malaysia should be proud that the majority of the technical experts deployed in the Texas project are Malaysians. This demonstrates that Malaysia has talent that can be developed into world-class athletes. Many countries that have reported viable deposits of rare earths are seriously considering venturing into the business. Here, at home, news of economic rare earth deposit discoveries in a few states has generated much interest. It has just been announced that the relatively poor state of Kelantan has rare earth mineral deposits that have the potential to generate over RM125 billion in revenue for the state. The extraction of such deposits using cutting-edge environmentally safe technologies should boost Kelantan’s economic standing. For many years now, we have been dependent on our oil revenues to drive our economy. That source is slowly but surely depleting. Even Petronas recognises this and is rightfully taking steps to venture into other energy businesses. Hydrogen has been announced as one such new business venture that Petronas is eyeing. The truth is that many countries around the world are actively preparing to tap into the potential offered by the hydrogen economy. Why not rare earths? Judging by the many recent revelations that we do have rich deposits of rare earths, we should waste no time in harnessing such wealth to replace our dwindling supply of petroleum. There is no more excuse not to do so, as the technology in rare earth processing has made great advances in addressing environmental concerns.