USA rare earth ore reserves 13 million metric tons; hybrids, solar cells, electronics
#1
03-10-2010, 11:32 AM
USA rare earth ore reserves 13 million metric tons; hybrids, solar cells, electronics
this is the stuff of the new technologies, hybrid cars, green equipment, etc.
does anyone else beside me believes that this may be a grand investment?
I'll have to see if the company is public traded
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China has warned that its own industrial demands could compel it to stop exporting rare earths within the next five or 10 years.
"There is already a shortage, because there are companies that already can't get enough material," said Jim Hedrick, a former USGS rare earth specialist who recently retired. "No one's trying to expand their use of rare earths because they know there's not more available."
U.S. Rare Earths practically stumbled upon its first rare earth deposit at Lehmi Pass, on the border between Idaho and Montana, about 15 years ago. The company founders coveted the area's reserves of thorium - an alternative nuclear fuel - and took little interest in the rare earths that were only used, at the time, in lighter flints and tracer bullets for the military.
Their view changed over the years as rare earths became practically irreplaceable in high-tech products used by millions of people today. The company only recently changed its name to U.S. Rare Earths after staking out another deposit at Diamond Creek, Idaho.
"The fact is, the Diamond Creek property is today, the most accessible, undeveloped rare earth resource with significant [heavy rare earths] that there is in North America," said Jack Lifton, an independent consultant who works with U.S. Rare Earths.
Recent USGS figures estimate that the U.S. holds rare earth ore reserves of up to 13 million metric tons. By contrast, the entire world produced just 124,000 metric tons in 2009 - but it would take both time and money for the U.S. to become self-sufficient in producing rare earths.
U.S. Rare Earths, Inc. is the only significant rare earth venture in the United States that is entirely owned, financed and operated by U.S. citizens.
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does anyone else beside me believes that this may be a grand investment?
I'll have to see if the company is public traded
------------------------------------------
China has warned that its own industrial demands could compel it to stop exporting rare earths within the next five or 10 years.
"There is already a shortage, because there are companies that already can't get enough material," said Jim Hedrick, a former USGS rare earth specialist who recently retired. "No one's trying to expand their use of rare earths because they know there's not more available."
U.S. Rare Earths practically stumbled upon its first rare earth deposit at Lehmi Pass, on the border between Idaho and Montana, about 15 years ago. The company founders coveted the area's reserves of thorium - an alternative nuclear fuel - and took little interest in the rare earths that were only used, at the time, in lighter flints and tracer bullets for the military.
Their view changed over the years as rare earths became practically irreplaceable in high-tech products used by millions of people today. The company only recently changed its name to U.S. Rare Earths after staking out another deposit at Diamond Creek, Idaho.
"The fact is, the Diamond Creek property is today, the most accessible, undeveloped rare earth resource with significant [heavy rare earths] that there is in North America," said Jack Lifton, an independent consultant who works with U.S. Rare Earths.
Recent USGS figures estimate that the U.S. holds rare earth ore reserves of up to 13 million metric tons. By contrast, the entire world produced just 124,000 metric tons in 2009 - but it would take both time and money for the U.S. to become self-sufficient in producing rare earths.
U.S. Rare Earths, Inc. is the only significant rare earth venture in the United States that is entirely owned, financed and operated by U.S. citizens.
.
Last edited by stomper; 03-10-2010 at 12:35 PM.
#2
03-12-2010, 03:04 PM
I met those guys at the Thorium Energy Alliance Conference last fall. They're a nice bunch of folks, but nobody in the U.S. is far-sighted enough to finance what they're doing.
They're hoping that the D.O.D. decides we need a 'strategic reserve' of rare earths. I'm hoping there's some way they can make their project work.
They're hoping that the D.O.D. decides we need a 'strategic reserve' of rare earths. I'm hoping there's some way they can make their project work.
#3
03-13-2010, 09:22 AM
I met those guys at the Thorium Energy Alliance Conference last fall. They're a nice bunch of folks, but nobody in the U.S. is far-sighted enough to finance what they're doing.
They're hoping that the D.O.D. decides we need a 'strategic reserve' of rare earths. I'm hoping there's some way they can make their project work.
They're hoping that the D.O.D. decides we need a 'strategic reserve' of rare earths. I'm hoping there's some way they can make their project work.
i cant find if the company is a publicly traded corp .. do you know what the status is ?
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