Production of rare-earth metals in Russia could increase sevenfold

Production of rare-earth metals (REM) in Russia could increase sevenfold, said Anton Alikhanov, Russian Minister of Industry and Trade at a meeting of the Federation Council Committee on Economic Policy.

"We have already developed the basic technologies for separating substances for rare and rare-earth metals. Thanks to large projects with interested investors, we expect to increase our own production of REM sevenfold, reducing dependence on imports to a minimum level," he said.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized that Russia plans to ramp up production of new materials based on REM, including the national project of technological leadership "New Materials and Chemistry". Putin also stated that Russia is ready to invite foreign partners to joint work on REM.

Russia plans to reduce the share of imported rare-earth metals to 45% by 2030 from the current 75%, thereby ensuring production at 50,000 tonnes.

The Ministry of Natural Resources reported that the total reserves of rare metals (29 types) in Russia currently amount to 658 million tons. The balance of rare-earth metals, as included in the rare metals classifier, totals 28.5 million tonnes. These reserves are sufficient both for the current needs of the Russian economy and for the long term, including to ensure export sales, the ministry emphasized.