Efforts to mine domestic rare earths are advancing in the waters around Minamitorishima, using the deep-sea scientific research vessel Chikyu. Mud containing rare earths was collected from a depth of 6,000m, with approximately 50 tons of mud reportedly recovered.
Mining of domestic rare earths is under way around Minamitorishima, 1,900km from Tokyo, targeting mud at a depth of 6,000m below sea level. The exploratory drilling uses the deep-sea scientific research vessel Chikyu, which successfully reached the seabed at a depth of approximately 6,000m and collected mud in February this year. The Cabinet Office’s SIP program director showed that the mined mud contains rare earths and explained that it had been recovered from the seabed at a depth of around 6,000m.
The mining equipment uses pipes to mix mud and seawater with material stirred up from the seabed at a depth of 6,000m, continuously pumping the mixture up to the vessel. Six propellers are installed beneath the vessel to keep it stable. The mud recovered this time reportedly contained 50 tons of rare earths, with a particularly high concentration of yttrium.
There are 17 types of rare earths, and China continues to nearly monopolize the market. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has repeatedly imposed export controls on Japan, adding Japanese companies to its restricted list in June this year and announcing similar controls in February. The export controls on Japan are viewed as countermeasures against statements by the Japanese government concerning a contingency involving Taiwan in the previous fiscal year, and remain in effect.
The mud collected this time consisted more than half of medium and heavy rare earths, which are particularly scarce and valuable, with yttrium accounting for the largest share overall. The price of yttrium surged in January this year, and it has been suggested that the controls may also be affecting price trends.