Putin Offered India Russian Rare-earth Metal Reserves

The document may be signed soon.

India and Russia want to sign a preliminary agreement on exploration, processing and technological cooperation in the field of critical minerals. About it writes Reuters with reference to two sources. According to the interlocutors of the agency, the agreement deals with lithium and rare earth metals. The document could be signed in the next few months. One of the Reuters sources also said that India may return to the project on lithium exploration in Mali, which is implemented by the Russian state corporation Rosatom, if the political situation in the country stabilizes. India had earlier pulled out of the project due to security concerns.

India has already signed agreements on critical minerals with Argentina, Australia and Japan and is in talks with Peru and Chile. New Delhi is trying to secure new foreign supplies of rare earth metals, but its success is modest - in 2024, it managed to sign only one agreement on lithium exploration and mining at sites in Argentina.

In November last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the government to prepare a plan for the development of the rare earth metals industry in the country by December 1. Within a month, the Cabinet of Ministers was to approve a roadmap for the long-term development of rare-earth metal production. According to the Ministry of Natural Resources, there are 28.5 million tons of rare earth metals and more than 650 million tons of rare metals in the subsoil. However, their extraction is practically non-existent, and almost all domestic consumption is covered by imports. With the consumption of 3,000 tons of rare earth metals per year, only 50 tons are mined. The share of imports exceeds 98%. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, 57% of Russia's needs in tungsten, 51% - in molybdenum, 61% - in zirconium, more than 90% - in niobium, more than 60% - in tantalum and 100% - in lithium are met through foreign purchases. Russia's share in the world production of rare earth metals is about 1%. Lacking its own rare earth mining technology, Russian authorities have also tried to bring in Chinese technology.

In recent years, India has sought to reduce its dependence on China, which dominates the global market for a number of critical minerals and has advanced mining and processing technologies. In 2023, the Indian government has listed more than 20 minerals as critical for the energy transition and growing industrial demand. India has prepared a $290 million incentive program for private companies producing rare earth magnets, Bloomberg reported citing sources.

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