Authoritative News: Production Control For Rear Earth and Tungsten

According to the website of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Natural Resources jointly issued a notice on the release of the total amount of rare earth mining, smelting and separation control indicators and the total amount of tungsten mining control indicators for the year of 2019. The notice pointed out that rare earth and tungsten are products strictly controlled by the state in terms of total production control, and no unit or individual can produce without or over plan.

According to the notice, the total control index of rare earth mining and smelting separation in the country in 2019 was 132,000 tons and 127,000 tons respectively. The total mining control index of national tungsten concentrate (65% tungsten trioxide content) is 105,000 tons, including 78150 tons of main mining index and 26,850 tons of comprehensive utilization index. The above indicators all contain the first batch of indicators that have been released.

In addition, the notice requires that all rare earth groups should promptly stipulate the provincial (district) industrial and informatization authorities in which the subordinate enterprises are located, and then decompose the smelting separation indicators to reach the enterprise, and report the decomposition of the indicators to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the province (district). ) The competent authorities of industry and informatization shall file the record. The relevant provincial natural resources authorities shall timely report the mining indicators of rare earth ore and tungsten mines to cities and counties, and report the decomposition of indicators to the Ministry of Natural Resources for the record. Relevant provincial-level industrial and informatization, natural resources authorities and rare earth groups shall be connected in the process of index decomposition, and the indicators shall be decomposed and reported for filing within 15 working days after the notice is issued.

The notice mentioned that the total amount of rare earth mining and smelting and separation control indicators should be allocated to key enterprises with advanced technical equipment and high environmental protection level to further increase the concentration of indicators. Enterprises that have one of the following conditions may not assign indicators:

——The mining enterprise does not have a mining license or a safe production license, and the recycling of rare earth resources projects or the relevant competent authorities have explicitly requested to suspend production and rectification;

——The rare earth smelting and separating enterprises use the backward production process and the smelting separation capacity that has been listed in the banned or eliminated catalogue to be less than 2000 tons (REO) per year, or the relevant departments have explicitly requested to suspend production and rectification;

——Unable to meet the environmental protection requirements of “Rare Earth Industry Pollutant Emission Standards” and radioactive protection;

- Long-term production suspension, no production conditions.

The notice also mentioned that it is necessary to organize production strictly according to the indicators, comply with relevant laws and regulations on environmental protection and resource development; it is strictly forbidden to carry out rare earth processing (including entrusted processing) business, and may not purchase and process illegal rare earth mineral products; rare earth comprehensive utilization enterprises may not process rare earth mineral products. (including imported mineral products); the use of overseas rare earth resources needs to be able to provide complete import procedures.