supply of rare earth
Since US President Donald Trump came to power, many such decisions were taken whose impact was visible on the Trump government itself. Meanwhile, he instructed India not to buy oil from Russia, which the government did not accept and continued buying oil from Russia. Now India is planning to deal with America as well as China. India and Russia are talking to each other to find a solution to Chinese rare earths.
Along with buying oil from Russia, India is now trying to acquire rare earths and important minerals, so that its dependence on China is reduced. This step has been taken after China’s recent export restrictions, which are affecting key industries. Indian companies and research institutes are evaluating Russian technologies and exploring collaboration with Russian government giants like NorNickel and Rosatom. Overall, India and Russia are helping each other to end China’s monopoly in the rare earth sector. Working on finding a middle path.
There may be an agreement with Russia
Russia has developed rare earth processing technologies, which are currently being tested in pilot projects. Moscow is now showing interest in implementing these technologies commercially on a large scale in collaboration with India. Recently, China tightened its export restrictions starting in April. This step was taken amid trade tensions with America. These restrictions have affected production in industries such as automobile, energy and consumer electronics in India and other countries.
The Indian government has asked the country’s companies, such as Lohum and Midwest, to explore collaboration with Russian firms that have expertise in these critical minerals. Russian state companies, such as Nornickel and Rosatom, could be potential partners. Also, institutes like the Council of Scientific Research of India (CSIR), Indian School of Mines and Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (Bhubaneswar) have been asked to evaluate Russian technologies.