'Smart-bomb' technology moving to China

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Tuesday, August 12, 2003 | Sherrie Gossett

[Lo-Pro]

WND update -
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=34037

In terms of the raw materials used to make the permanent magnets, the country's foremost supplier (80 percent) of rare-earth materials (Molycorp) experienced a shut down in 1998, according to Insight magazine, after spending millions to remake its mining facilities following Bureau of Land Management complaints that it was endangering the desert-tortoise environment. Dr. Stanley Trout, a former consultant to Molycorp, told WND the deteriorating prices on rare earths, mainly due to Chinese competition were also a key factor in the severe operational cutbacks. Some separation facilities at the mine, used to process and purify rare-earth ores remain closed, subject to resolution of the environmental issues. The Mountain Pass rare-earth deposit is the highest quality deposit in the world.

A spokesperson for the Pentagon told WND, "Seventy-five percent of the raw material used to make rare-earth magnets is currently supplied by China. Although other sources and mines exist around the world – including the United States – China remains the most cost effective source at this time."

Flashback: Insight Magazine 2003: "Prior to the 1998 shutdown of the Unocal-owned mine, Molycorp and its leading competitor, China's Baotou mine, supplied more than 80 percent of the world's rare earths." from How Beijing Gets US Defense Plants

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the information!

[GOP_1900AD]

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