By Yuka Obayashi
Shizuoka, Japan, Jan 12 (Reuters) – A Japanese mining ship set off on Monday for a rare coral atoll to investigate soil rich in rare earths, part of Tokyo’s drive to curb its reliance on China for key minerals as Beijing tightens supplies.
The month-long mission by the test vessel Chikyu, near Minamitori Island, about 1,900 km (1,200 miles) southeast of Tokyo, will mark the world’s first attempt to continuously raise seabeds of rare earths from a depth of 6 km (4 miles) on board.
Japan has been reducing its dependence on China for minerals important to its Western allies, such as cars, smartphones and military equipment, an effort that comes amid a major diplomatic row with Beijing.
“One of our missions is to build a supply chain for domestically produced rare earths to ensure a steady supply of minerals needed for industry,” Shoichi Ishii, head of the government-backed project, told reporters before the ship departed from the port city of Shizuoka last month.
Reducing dependence on China will not be easy
China last week banned the export of certain vital minerals for Japan’s military, including some for civilian and military use. The Wall Street Journal reports that Beijing has begun to more broadly restrict rare-earth exports to Japan.
Japan has condemned China’s dual-use ban but declined to comment on reports of a broader ban, which China has neither confirmed nor denied. However, Chinese state media said Beijing was weighing the measure.
Finance ministers from the Group of Seven industrial powers will discuss rare-earth supplies at a meeting in Washington on Monday, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Japan is no stranger to facing China’s wrath over rare earths. China suspended exports in 2010 after incidents near disputed islands in the East China Sea.
Since then, Japan has reduced its dependence on China from 90% to 60% by investing in overseas projects, such as trading house Sozitz’s alliance with Australia’s Linas Rare Earths, and promoting rare-earth recycling and manufacturing processes that rely less on minerals.
The Minamitori Island project, however, is the first to attempt to source rare earths domestically.
“The basic solution is to be able to produce rare earths within Japan,” said Takahide Kiuchi, executive economist at Nomura Research Institute.
“If this new round of export controls covers more rare earths, Japanese companies will try to move away from China again, but I don’t think it will be easy,” he said.
