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| Economy | ||
| China just stopped exporting two minerals the world's chipmakers need | ||
| 2023-09-23 | ||
[CNN] China’s exports of two rare minerals essential for manufacturing semiconductors fell to zero in August, a month after Beijing imposed curbs on sales overseas, citing national security.
When asked about the lack of exports last month, He Yadong, a spokesperson from China’s commerce ministry told a press briefing Thursday that the department had received applications from companies to export the two materials. Some applications had been approved, he said, without elaborating. Value added (since they can make chips themselves now)? | ||
| Posted by:Grom the Reflective |
| #3 Also: Pentagon Has Strategic Germanium Stockpile but No Gallium Reserves [USNews] The Pentagon holds a strategic U.S. stockpile for germanium but currently has no inventory reserves for gallium, a spokesperson said on Thursday, after China announced export restrictions on the two metals used in semiconductors. "The (Defense) Department is proactively taking steps using Defense Production Act Title III authorities to increase domestic mining and processing of critical materials for the microelectronics and space supply chain, including gallium and germanium," the spokesperson said. Germanium is used in high-speed computer chips, plastics and military applications such as night-vision devices, as well as satellite imagery sensors. Gallium is used in radar and radio communication devices, satellites and LEDs. China's abrupt announcement on Monday of controls from Aug. 1 on exports of some gallium and germanium products, also used in electric vehicles (EVs) and fibre optic cables, has sent companies scrambling to secure supplies and bumped up prices. While major defense contractors like Lockheed Martin Corp may not buy gallium and germanium directly, they likely purchase semiconductors from suppliers who source Chinese gallium and germanium, said Arun Seraphin, executive director for the National Defense Industrial Association’s Emerging Technologies Institute. Restrictions on that supply potentially “slows down the production of DoD systems” or “ratchets up the cost,” he said. However, Dak Hardwick, vice president of international affairs at the Aerospace Industries Association, said the export restrictions will likely have little short-term impact for defense companies, which tend to buy materials for critical systems far in advance. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2023-09-23 14:38 |
| #2 USGS: gallium deposits USGS: germanium deposits |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2023-09-23 14:35 |
| #1 I can't help wondering just how much gallium and geranium there is in the US that we can't mine because of green fantasies. |
| Posted by: Tom 2023-09-23 10:39 |