The Sustainable Development Strategies Group (SDSG), in partnership with Strategic Mineral Consulting and Jataware, is launching a global database of Rare Earth Element (REE) Facilities. The REE group of seventeen mineral elements are essential to a multitude of consumer goods products and have important military applications, yet the mining and processing of these minerals can have adverse impacts on the environment and human health. 

The Global Inventory of Advanced Rare Earth Element Assets is intended to inform all stakeholders of the locations of operational REE mines, processing facilities and advanced prospects for new REE projects. The Inventory includes a detailed report on REE assets country by country and an interactive digital map geolocating known projects globally. 

From Washington to Beijing to Brussels, the race to remake and control REE supply chains is heating up. REEs are integral to the production of magnets, battery alloys, ceramics, and glass. China now holds near monopoly control over many REE supply chain steps including separation (cracking), metallization, and alloying. In an attempt to break this monopoly, the U.S. government and other Western governments have recently undertaken a series of domestic and overseas investments of various types across the REE and REE magnet supply chain.

Though REEs have recently been the subject of extensive press reporting and debate in geopolitical circles, baseline knowledge remains limited about where facilities are located, how supply chains function, the end uses of REE-derived products, the social/environmental impacts of mining/processing, and public policy interventions to reshape global supply chains. SDSG’s Global Inventory of Advanced Rare Earth Element Assets is the first publication in a series of reports we are releasing to inform public debate on these key issues. 

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We use research, practice, and teaching to provide guidance to communities, companies, and governments on law and policy frameworks that advance best practices for sustainable energy and natural resource development.

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SDSG’s core programs represent the foundation of our mission to promote equitable, inclusive, and sustainable development. From protecting Indigenous rights to ensuring responsible mineral governance, each program guides a set of projects addressing the world’s most pressing social and environmental challenges.

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