ST. PETERSBURG, May 22. /TASS/. Russia’s explored reserves of rare earth metals, totaling 28.5 mln tonnes, are sufficient to meet global demand, Head of the Russian Federal Agency for Subsoil Use (Rosnedra) Oleg Kazakov said.
"With global consumption projected to rise to 300,000 tonnes, Russia possesses 28.5 mln tonnes of reserves in explored deposits. Yes, there are questions concerning the relative abundance of certain rare earth metals, as consumption primarily focuses on three specific types. Our two largest deposits - Lovozerskoye, which is currently under development, and Tomtorskoye, which has yet to be developed - together contain 11 ln tonnes of rare earth elements. This means we are fully capable of supplying the entire world," Kazakov stated.
According to him, the main challenge regarding rare earth metals is not further geological exploration, but rather the selection of optimal development strategies for existing deposits and the advancement of processing technologies.
Kazakov noted that over the past decade, global consumption of rare earth metals has risen from 100,000 to 300,000 tonnes annually.
At the same time, the primary beneficiaries of the global environmental agenda are not rare earth metals, but traditional industrial metals such as nickel, copper, and cobalt. "It turns out that for this group - copper, nickel, cobalt - almost 100% of global consumption growth is driven by sectors tied to new energy and the ‘green’ economy. The takeaway is that the global environmental agenda itself is generating substantial demand not only for key industrial raw materials but also for the metals we conveniently refer to as high-tech metals," he concluded.