The company has not started mining yet. It still has to get permits and work with other businesses to put operations in place. Ed Cowle says a lot of work remains.
EDWARD COWLE: "I would say conservatively the earliest that we could open the mine has to be six to seven years."
Another American company is Molycorp. Jim Sims, the public affairs director, says Molycorp has already begun producing three thousand tons of rare earths a year. That makes the United States the world's second largest producer, a distant second.
JIM SIMS: "Molycorp is the western hemisphere's only producer of rare earth products.”
The mineral bastnasite can contain 15 or even 17 rare earth metals. But chemically separating the elements is costly and difficult
Molycorp says the largest reserves of rare earths outside of China are in its mine in Mountain Pass, California, and in the Mount Weld area of Australia.
Jim Sims says Molycorp spends only about ten percent on mining. The big cost is in chemically separating the rare earths from the minerals that carry them.
JIM SIMS: "Every rare earth deposit on the planet has all fifteen and sometimes all seventeen rare earths."
He says Molycorp raised about three hundred eighty million dollars when it sold stock to the public for the first time in July. The company aims to increase production to twenty thousand tons by two thousand twelve. It says that would more than meet current levels of demand in the United States.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25