China controls the electric car value chain, and that includes some key elements: rare earthsFrom electric cars to lasers and missiles, China produces 70% of rare earths, and few countries can do anything about it. But Japan has just made a statement.
They have found on a remote island in the Pacific a huge deposit of manganese nodules containing 610,000 tons of cobaltenough to meet Japanese demand for the metal for more than 75 years, and 740,000 tonnes of nickel, enough to meet demand for more than 11 years.
Like tennis balls
Researchers from The Nippon Foundation and the University of Tokyo have discovered a vast field of manganese nodules rich in rare metals such as cobalt and nickel, both of which are crucial for making batteries for electric cars and smartphones. The production and smelting of these metals is currently dominated by China and African countries, and Japan is almost entirely dependent on imports of these resources. In this regard, the United States is working with Canada, Australia and Japan so that they can increase their domestic production of critical minerals and rare earth elements to reduce dependence on China.
But there is good news for Japan because the discovery took place at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, within the country’s exclusive economic zone. According to the discoverers, the group confirmed the presence of a dense field of about 1000 m2. 230 million tons of manganese deposits “easily extractable in the form of fist-sized nodules,” they explain, spread over an area of approximately 10,000 square kilometers.
Manganese nodule samples found by researchers from The Nippon Foundation and the University of Tokyo. Image: The Nippon Foundation.
The main problem they face is that this gold mine is located at a depth of up to 5,700 metres, and so far no details have been revealed about the techniques or the environmental impact of the extraction. The nodules, which also contain copper, are formed over millions of years when iron and manganese oxides dissolved in seawater precipitate around their cores, like stones and shark teeth.
The plan on paper is to begin large-scale experimental mining of the nodules in 2026, “extracting thousands of tons a day with an eye toward securing 3 million tons a year,” details The Nippon Foundation. The mined nodules will be delivered to Japanese companies with the technology to refine them.
Starting in 2026, the goal is to establish a joint venture with several Japanese companies to market the minerals as domestically produced resources, which can be used to manufacture everything from electric cars to medical equipment, computers and smartphones.
Source: www.motorpasion.com
