The last time we visited the issue of rare earth minerals at Legal Insurrection, the Chinese had shut down the export of 2 important rare earth metals used in semiconductor manufacture: gallium and germanium.
In December, China imposed a trade ban on rare earth extraction equipment.
The second shot was new trade ban imposed by China on specialized rare earth production equipment, which means rivals will have to develop their own processes for extracting commercial quantities of metals needed in a variety of technologies.Rare earths have been a Chinese specialty for decades thanks to large deposits of ore and through the application of smart mining and treatment methods which evolved just in time to catch surging demand.While not household names it would not be possible to run the modern world without neodymium, praseodymium, terbium, or dysprosium, four of the 17 elements that make up the rare earth family.
Now I have some good news to share. Our country could soon surpass China as the world leader in rare earth minerals after more than 2.34 billion metric tons were discovered in Wyoming.
American Rare Earths Inc announced that the reserves near Wheatland dramatically surpass the Asian nation’s 44 million metric tons, saying it ‘exceeded our wildest dreams’ after drilling only about 25 percent of the property.The company has a stake in 367 mining claims across 6,320 acres of land in the Halleck Creek Project, along with four Wyoming mineral leases on 1,844 acres on the same project now called Cowboy State Mine.The types of minerals at the site are used in smartphones, hybrid car motors and military technologies – among others.
Since China’s extraction ban, one company, American Rare Earths, has been working hard to expand our nation’s access options. It appears they may have struck the mother lode.
American Rare Earths Inc. has its sights on thousands of acres of land near Wheatland, Wyoming. The company disclosed in a technical report on Wednesday that it found 64% more rare earth minerals than it had originally envisioned in a March 2023 assessment of the land.The newly disclosed figure of 2.34 billion metric tons of rare earth minerals found southwest of Wheatland by American Rare Earths Inc. could dwarf in size the 1.2 million metric ton estimates in northeastern Wyoming that one of its competitors claimed was one of the biggest discoveries in the world.A metric ton equals about 2,200 pounds while a ton is 2,000 pounds.“This exceeded our wildest dreams, and we only drilled on about 25% of the property,” said Donald Swartz, CEO of American Rare Earths.The company is the U.S.-based unit of an Australian-founded exploration company working in Wyoming.
Another company is also working on another potentially rich site for these valuable minerals.
Ramaco Resources revealed it had found a deposit of rare minerals near Sheridan in Wyoming, that could have a value of $37 billion.Ramaco Resources CEO Randall Atkins told Cowboy State Daily: “We only tested it for 100, 200 feet, which is about the maximum you’d ever want to do a conventional coal mine.
I can only hope we will eventually have politicians and policy implementers that permit us to develop these valuable resources.
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