Category: Mining
Japan to Test Deep Sea Rare Earth Mining to Cut China Reliance
Japan embarks Sunday on what it says is the world's first bid to tap deep sea rare earths at a depth of 6,000 metres -- greater than the height of Mount Fuji -- to curb dependence on China. A Japanese deep-sea ...
China’s Rare Earths El Dorado Gives Strategic Edge
By Peter Catterall Buried in the reddish soil of southern China lies latent power: one of the largest clusters of critical rare earths is mined around the clock by a secretive, heavily guarded industry. The ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: China Moves to Build an Advanced Copper Supply Chain
Reuters reports that Chinese scientists have completed the country’s first extreme ultraviolet lithography machine, used to produce the advanced semiconductors used to power artificial intelligence applications. The prototype was reportedly reverse-engineered by scientists who used to work at the Dutch chip leader ASML. They reportedly plan to start ...
Dozens of Chinese Nationals Detained After Attack on Indonesian Soldiers in Kalimantan
Dozens of Chinese nationals are being held by Indonesian immigration authorities after an attack on soldiers and a civilian at a gold mine in West Kalimantan, on the Indonesian part of Borneo, officials said. The Indonesian immigration office in Ketapang, ...
Why the U.S.-DRC Mining Deal is Bad News For China
The U.S. and the DR Congo signed a landmark deal on critical minerals during President Félix Tshisekedi's visit to the White House this week. The pact provides the U.S. with extraordinary access to the Congolese mining sector and is widely expected ...
In Congo’s Cobalt Belt, a Chinese Miner’s Waste Leaves Villages Poisoned and Furious
By Camille Lafont Carrying her sore-pocked daughter across her decaying field, Helene Mvubu says she is one of thousands to have fallen victim to the toxic waste defiling the Democratic Republic of Congo's mining capital. ...
China Urges Evacuation After Attack on Tajikistan-Afghanistan Border
China’s embassy in Tajikistan called on its nationals to leave the country’s border zone with Afghanistan, after an attack killed three Chinese people and wounded one. The victims worked for the mining company LLC Shohin SM. Tajik authorities said ...
Alleged Abuses at Chinese-Invested Nickel Plant Expose Indonesia’s Weak Labor Oversight
Last month, LBH Makassar, a legal-aid organization in eastern Indonesia that represents workers and low-income communities, delivered an open letter to the Chinese Embassy in Jakarta. The letter describes serious labor violations at PT Huadi Nickel Alloy Indonesia, a Chinese-invested nickel smelter operating in Bantaeng, a ...
EU Says Must ‘Step up’ Against China Rare Earths ‘Racket’
The European Union must ramp up efforts to break its dependence on China for rare earths faced with export curbs that amount to a "racket" by Beijing, the bloc's industry chief Stephane Sejourne said Tuesday. China, the world's top producer of ...
As Conflict Escalates in Eastern Congo, China’s Mining Giants Confront New Risks Far From the Front Lines
In late November, China’s Foreign Ministry issued a stark warning about the Democratic Republic of Congo: the security situation in the east has deteriorated sharply, with armed clashes, extremist activity and attacks against foreign workers rising again. Congo sits at the ...
Kyrgyzstan Arrests Chinese CEO of Gold Mining Firm
Kyrgyzstan said Tuesday it had arrested the Chinese CEO of a gold mining firm accused of causing "large-scale" environmental damage, amid growing public scrutiny over Beijing's influence in the Central Asian country. China has poured hundreds of millions of dollars of ...
G20 Communiqué Reflects Both China’s Priorities and Growing Concerns Over Mineral Export Controls
Chinese Premier Li Qiang took full advantage of the U.S. absence at this weekend's G20 summit in Johannesburg to shape the final communiqué in ways that aligned with Beijing's priorities on multilateralism, debt, and, most notably, critical minerals. Consistent with previous ...