Myanmar plays a critical role
The National Flag of the People’s Republic of China and a mining area.
Craig Hastings | Moment | Getty Images
Beijing accelerates controls on rare land exports, triggers global famine, and demonstrates industries’ dependence on Chinese supply chains.
In recent years, however, China itself has relied on rare soil materials from an unexpected source: Myanmar’s relatively small and torn economy of war.
Although China is the best rare world manufacturer in the world, it still imports raw materials containing metals envied from abroad.
In his statement to CNBC, Myanmar said last year that China’s total rare land imports constitute about 57%.
According to China Customs Data, Myanmar’s rare land exports to China increased significantly in 2018 and reached approximately 42,000 metric tons until 2023.
Baskaran added that imports from Myanmar are also high in the content of heavy rare soil elements, which are generally less abundant in the world shell and raise their values and famine.
“Myanmar’s production significantly strengthened China’s dominant position, and gave Beijing a de facto monopoly on the global heavy rare land supply chain – and most of the leverage he uses today.”
The country has become the key source of two heavy rare worlds, dysprosiums and manners, which play important roles in high -tech production, including defense and military, aviation and renewable energy sector.
“This dynamic, extraction in Myanmar intensifies a supply chain, while the flow process and value is mainly carried out in China.” He said.
Why Myanmar?
Project Blue Research Director David Merriman told CNBC deposits, which tend to have higher heavy rare soil content.
This “ionic adsorption clay” or IAC deposits come with high environmental costs that apply chemical reagents for clay.
According to Merriman, the majority of world IAC operations were in South China from the beginning of 2010 to the middle. But when Beijing starts to practice Environmental controls and standards In the Nadir Earths industry, most of these projects began to close.
“Myanmar was seen as a key region with geology similar to most of the IAC deposit areas in China, especially in the north of the country,” Merriman said. He said.
“You started to see a very fast structure from the new IAC -type mines in Myanmar, essentially replaced local Chinese production. There were many Chinese business participation in the development of these new IAC projects.”
In his statement to CNBC, the rare lands extracted by these IAC miners in Myanmar are then sent to China as “rare soil oxides”.
One in 2024 report The global witness, a non -profit organization focusing on environmental and human rights violations, said that China’s rare landing to Myanmar effectively provides “environment and local communities at terrible costs” effectively.
China’s rare soil risks
Experts, China’s confidence in Myanmar Nadir Earths also opened the risks of supply chain, he said.
According to Global Witness’s research, most of the heavy rare worlds from Myanmar come from the North Kachin province, which limits China. However, after Myanmar’s violent military coup in 2021, the military junta struggled to maintain the control of the region in the midst of the opposition from public and armed groups.
“Considering the ongoing civil war, the Kachin Army (KIA), a group of armed rebellion, is a risky judicial authority to rely on the independence army (KIA), which is responsible for half the production of heavy rare worlds, a group of armed rebellion.” He said.
Since the seizure, there have been reports on supply outages that have caused sudden increases in the prices of some heavy rare worlds. According to Reuters In the report, Kia was trying to use the sources as a leverage against Beijing.
Chinese Customs Data show that the imports of rare land oxides from Myanmar have fallen to one third in the first five months of the year compared to the same period last year.
“If Myanmar would stop all exports of rare land feed stocks to China, China would fight to meet the demands of heavy rare worlds in the short term,” Project Blue’s Merriman said. He said.
Not surprisingly, Beijing wants to diversify heavy rare soil sources.
According to Merriman, in nearby countries, including Malaysia and Laos, there are IAC deposits where some projects are established with the participation of China.
Nevertheless, these countries, which will offer difficulties for rare land mines, are expected to be higher in environmental standards.
The decision to reduce the inference of China’s heavy rare land elements can serve as a warning to other countries about the costs of the development of such projects. A report In 2022, the Chinese media group Caixin documented that the old IAC operation areas in South China have left behind toxic water and dirty soil and damage local farmers’ livelihoods.
