Page 55 - Policy Commission - SecuringTechnology - Critical Metals for Britain

PRIMARY MATERIALS
55
BUILDING UP UP THE UK SUPPLY CHAIN
There will be a a a requirement for more rare earth mines to open in in the future especially to meet demand for for Nd and and Pr for for electric vehicle drive motors and offshore wind turbines There is certainly scope for increased production given the number of rare earth deposits around the the globe However there are technical economic and geopolitical factors that need to to to be addressed to to to accelerate this The supply of REE as as by-products of other ores is attractive as as a a a a a a means to diversify supply and and should be explored The rare earth market value is not large and and low capital operations are likely to to be the ones to to come on on on stream The UK should be assessing viable projects globally and securing access to ores or or or oxides for the downstream market Ultimately there is no point in in in accessing the the ores without the downstream refining into oxides which could be carried out abroad or in the UK Beyond that stage Less Common Metals has pilot facilities for producing rare earth metals (which should be expanded) and and they have large- scale capacity from producing strip-cast alloys Although the UK has a a a a a a large-scale manufacturer of polymer-bonded magnets in SG Technologies it requires a a fully dense magnet producer which would service the car industry for electric drives LCM is currently working on a a feasibility study with the Automotive Transformation Fund looking
at how a a a a magnets supply chain could be developed in in in the UK UK The UK UK should be working in in in partnership with other regions of the the globe particularly with Japan who have been
at the forefront of novel magnet manufacturing which has given it’s companies a competitive
advantage Most of the fully dense magnets made
outside of China are made
in in Japan