China has stolen a march on its global rivals in the race to dominate the next new source of the rare metals vital to the tech industry – the ocean floor, the Washington Post reported.
The sea is thought to hold several times more of these rare metals, key to almost all of today’s electronics, clean-energy products and advanced computer chips, than exist beneath the surface on land, the report went on.
It said China already holds five of the 30 exploration licences that the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has granted so far, the most of any country, ahead of the planned go-ahead for the start of deep-sea mining as soon as 2025.
Read the full story: The Washington Post
- By Sean O’Meara
Also on AF:
China Blocked Exports of Two Chipmaking Metals in August
China’s Overseas Metals, Mining Deals Set For Record Year – FT
Vietnam to Restart Giant Rare Earths Mine in Bid to Rival China
China Rare Earth Prices Soar on Myanmar Mine Closures
