Critical Minerals

CONTEXT: Recently central government has identified 30 minerals as critical minerals.

CRITICAL MINERALS: Critical minerals, also known as strategic minerals or critical raw materials, refer to a group of minerals and elements that are of vital importance to modern economies and essential for various high-tech industries, clean energy technologies, defense applications, and other emerging technologies.

These minerals are crucial for economic and national security, and their availability can significantly impact a country’s technological advancement and industrial competitiveness.

EXAMPLES AND APPLICATIONS OF CRITICAL MINERALS

1. Rare Earth Elements (REEs): REEs are a group of 17 elements, including cerium, neodymium, dysprosium, and others. They are vital components in various high-tech applications, including electronics, electric vehicle batteries, wind turbines, and defense systems.
2. Lithium: Lithium is a crucial component of lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy storage systems. As the demand for EVs and clean energy technologies rises, lithium’s importance has grown significantly.
3. Cobalt: Cobalt is a key component in lithium-ion batteries and is essential for the electric vehicle industry. However, its supply chain has raised concerns about ethical mining practices in some regions.
4. Graphite: Graphite is a critical material used in lithium-ion batteries and is essential for energy storage and electric vehicles.
5. Platinum Group Metals (PGMs): PGMs, including platinum, palladium, and rhodium, are essential for catalytic converters in vehicles to reduce harmful emissions.
6. Indium: Indium is used in the production of touchscreen displays, solar cells, and other electronic devices.
7. Tantalum: Tantalum is used in electronics, such as capacitors and high-temperature-resistant components.
8. Titanium: Titanium is a lightweight, strong metal used in aerospace, defense, and medical applications.
9. Beryllium: Beryllium is used in aerospace and defense industries for its lightweight and high-strength properties.

IMPORTANCE OF CRITICAL MINERALS

1. Economic development and national security: These are minerals that are essential for economic development and national security, and the lack of availability of these minerals or the concentration of extraction or processing in a few geographical locations could potentially lead to “supply chain vulnerabilities and even disruption of supplies”
2. Future requirements: Most countries of the world have identified critical minerals as per their national priorities and future requirements.
3. Infrastructure development: Minerals such as lithium, graphite, cobalt, titanium, and rare earth elements, are essential for the advancement of many sectors, including high-tech electronics, telecommunications, transport, and defence.
4. Electronics manufacturing and semiconductor push underlines the need to secure the supply of critical minerals.

CRITICAL MINERAL EXPLORATION IN INDIA

1. Geological Survey of India carried out a G3 stage mineral exploration in 202-22
2. Based on the mapping outcome, more exploration programmes on various mineral commodities including lithium will be taken up in the future in different parts of the country, including Jammu & Kashmir.
3. A joint venture company namely Khanij Bidesh India Ltd. (KABIL) has been incorporated to identify and acquire overseas mineral assets.

GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES

1. In 2011 the Planning Commission of India highlighted the need for the “assured availability of mineral resources for the country’s industrial growth”, with a clear focus on the well-planned exploration and management of already discovered resources.
2. From 2017 to 2020, a big thrust was accorded to the study of the exploration and development of rare earth elements in the country.
3. Seven member committee of the Ministry of Mines was constituted in 2022, to identify a list of minerals critical to our country and the panel decided to have a three-stage assessment to arrive at a list of critical minerals.

• First Stage of Assessment: the panel looked at the strategies of various countries such as Australia, the USA, Canada, the UK, Japan, and South Korea.
  • Accordingly, a total of 69 elements/ minerals that were considered critical by major global economies were identified for further examination.
• Second stage of Assessment: an inter-ministerial consultation was carried out with different ministries to identify minerals critical to their sectors.
• Third stage Assessment: was to derive an empirical formula for evaluating minerals criticality, taking cognizance of the EU methodology that considers two major factors — economic importance and supply risk.

4. India has recently been inducted into the Mineral Security Partnership (MSP), a US-led collaboration of 14 countries that aims to catalyse public and private investment in critical mineral supply chains globally.

GLOBAL SCENARIO

1. The USA adopted a two-stage screening methodology to arrive at the list of critical minerals.
2. In the UK, the criticality to the British economy was determined in terms of their global supply risks and the economic vulnerability to such a disruption.
3. The European Commission has been issuing a list of critical raw minerals since 2011 that is updated every three years.
   2023. A total of 34 raw materials are identified as Critical Raw Materials for 2023.
4. Japan has identified a set of 31 minerals as critical for its economy.
5. Australia, in 2019, released its inaugural Critical Minerals List and associated national strategy and a list of 24 critical minerals was first identified.

CHALLENGES IN ENSURING RESILIENT CRITICAL MINERALS SUPPLY

1. Limited availability of critical minerals: The rare availability of critical minerals poses a challenge in meeting the growing demand for these minerals.
2. Geopolitical risks: Complex supply chains can be disrupted by hostile regimes or politically unstable regions, leading to supply chain disruptions.
3. Dominance of certain countries: A few countries, such as China, are the dominant producers of critical minerals, leading to concerns over supply disruptions in case of a geopolitical conflict.
4. Increasing demand for critical minerals: With the shift towards renewable energy technologies and electric vehicles, the demand for critical minerals such as copper, lithium, and rare earth elements is increasing rapidly.
5. Reliance on foreign partners: Countries with limited reserves and higher requirements for critical minerals may have to rely on foreign partners to meet their domestic needs, leading to supply chain vulnerabilities.
6. Environmental and social concerns: The extraction and processing of critical minerals can have negative environmental and social impacts, leading to challenges in meeting sustainability goals.

WAY FORWARD

1. Centre of Excellence for Critical Minerals: A wing in the Ministry of Mines can be established as a Centre of Excellence for Critical Minerals
2. Developing domestic sources of critical minerals: This can be achieved by promoting exploration and mining activities, both by public and private sector entities.
3. Encouraging responsible mining practices: The Indian government should encourage responsible mining practices that minimize the negative environmental and social impacts of mining activities.
4. Need for a Specialized Agency: The expert team proposed the establishment of a National Institute or Center of Excellence dedicated to critical minerals, similar to Australia’s CSIRO.
5. Promoting transparency in the supply chain: India should promote transparency in the critical minerals supply chain by ensuring the traceability of minerals from the point of extraction to the point of end-use.
6. Investing in research and development: India should invest in research and development to develop new technologies and processes for efficient extraction, processing, and recycling of critical minerals.
7. Developing a national critical minerals strategy: India should develop a national critical minerals strategy that identifies priority minerals, promotes domestic exploration and mining, and promotes sustainable and responsible mining practices.