Where do they come from?
Rare Earths are not found as free metals in the earth’s crust, rather within a mixed ‘cocktail’ of Rare Earth elements that need to be separated for their individual or combined commercial use. Despite their name, Rare Earths are relatively abundant in the earths crust, however are often of low quality and rarely presented in economic concentration.
China currently supplies approximately 95% of the global Rare Earths market. More than 70% of the supply of light Rare Earths are supplied from one mine in China. Mt Weld, with its very high grade contains light Rare Earths and is also high in Europium, a heavy Rare Earth.
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