REE prices surge 'here to stay'https://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201104/s3186159.htm
Rare earth prices surge drives industry and 'here to stay'
By Babs McHugh
Friday, 08/04/2011
The head of a Perth company planning a rare earths project in Greenland says the high prices they are now fetching are here to stay.
Rod McIlree says the race is now on for the first major mine outside of China to be brought into production.
"If you look at where the price of rare earths has come from in the last 24 months, it's had a substantial rise" he says.
"In 2008 they were around about $6 a kilo, and now they're around about $30 kg.
"Feasibility studies are showing that it's economic to mine them at these price levels."
Mr McIlree disagrees with some claims that the price hike is a bubble and not sustainable.
"What we've seen is a fundamental shift in the price that is here for the long term now" he says.
"One of the key uses of these elements is in green technologies such as wind turbines and electric cars.
"I think there's about 40 to 50 kilo's of rare earths in each electric or hybrid car.
"Any type of gadgetry that people use has rare earths in it. People are moving from one mobile phone to two mobile phones, a blackberry in some cases, and an IPad.
"So the intensity of use of these metals is entrenched in human behaviour."