The China Rare Earth Group's breakthrough in mine exploration in Liangshan Yi autonomous prefecture, Sichuan province, where it has stumbled upon an additional 4.96 million tons of rare earth reserves as officially announced on Sept 15, will have a huge impact.

Rare earths is a collective term for 17 elements including scandium, yttrium, and the lanthanide series, all of which play key roles in various industrial fields such as aerospace, specialty materials, metallurgy and energy.

According to data from the United States Geological Survey, China had a reserve of 44 million tons of rare earths, almost twice that of the next highest, Vietnam, which has 22 million tons.

But having a large reserve alone doesn't naturally make one dominate the global market. China is not a leader in the processing of rare earths, namely the ability to turn mined rare earth materials into industrial products. Many developed nations import rare earth minerals from China, make their own products and sell them in the international market.

Which in turn requires China to further sharpen its relevant technologies to secure a leading role in not only the global reserves of rare earths but also their finished products market. Also, since rare earth mining is harmful to the environment, China bears high environmental costs too. However, that could change as the nation's first comprehensive rare earth regulation, which says domestic rare earth resources should be exploited in a protective manner, comes into effect on Oct 1.

The known rare earth resources in Liangshan, estimated at 2.78 million tons according to an academic conference in 2020, are primarily light rare earths, classified as bastnaesite rare earth deposits, with associated minerals such as fluorite and barite. If the additional 4.96 million tons are similar in composition, which is highly likely, that will be an added reason for China to boost its technology upgrading so as to make better use of its resources.