Europe faces a stark reality check in its bid to break China’s stranglehold on rare earths, with new analysis showing the continent may produce less than 17% of its magnet-grade rare earth needs by 2030—despite surging demand for EVs and wind turbines.
Key Findings:
💰 Cost Crisis: Chinese rare earth products are 20-70% cheaper than European equivalents, per Bain & Company.
⚡ Demand Surge: EU’s magnet-grade rare earth demand will jump 50% by 2030 (to 30,000 tons/year), but local supply may cover just 5,000 tons.
⛏️ Mining Bottleneck: Of 50 global rare earth mining projects, only 2-5 are economically viable by 2030 due to depressed prices.
Why Europe Is Losing:
China’s Monopoly: Controls 90% of processing and 65% of mining—flooding markets with cheap supply.
Brutal Economics: Even Solvay’s new French processing plant (launched today) can’t bridge the 40% cost gap.
Recycling Too Late: Meaningful magnet recycling won’t start before 2035, leaving a decade-long deficit.