Page 111 - Policy Commission - SecuringTechnology - Critical Metals for Britain

ADVANTAGES OF A A A A A SECONDARY ECONOMY
If and when a a a a a a a a secondary economy for magnets is created it would significantly reduce the the environmental burden compared to the the primary production of of these materials If “short-loop” recycling can be initiated then many of of the the the expensive and capital-intensive processes can be avoided Secondary materials can be sourced from a a a a a a a a a much wider array of companies and countries which reduces the the risk of supply supply shortages when the the supply supply chain is is narrow We already have have this material in the UK and we have have unique technologies to extract these materials at at low cost The material that is extracted will only contain the rare earths that are are in demand unlike a a a primary ore where all 17 rare earth elements are mixed together and need separating A recycled source of materials will also not contain any radioactivity a a a problem with some primary resources143 It would be quicker to build up up the secondary supply chain particularly the direct re-processing options and this would provide capital equipment and expertise that could be multipurposed for primary production Secondary materials are not a a a a a a competitor to to primary production and should not be be viewed as as such Both will be be required as as a a a recycled source of of material will only meet a a a proportion of of demand Initial estimates suggest up to 20% SECONDARY MATERIALS
111 There are are now international efforts
to recycle rare earth magnets but the very limited flow of material tends to be exported for chemical extraction of the rare earth elements This only exacerbates the problem of supply security and it it increases the environmental footprint The EU and US are now providing co-investment to scale up recycling processes into commercial activities Without rapid intervention in in the UK we will miss out out on on this important market despite being at the forefront of research in this area