China Halts Exports Of Critical Minerals, Can India Seize the Moment?

China has stopped exporting six important heavy rare earth metals and magnets, according to a NYT report. This comes after the U.S. announced new tariffs on April 2. These materials are used in electric vehicles, smartphones, drones, defence systems, and renewable energy technologies.

China controls 99% of the world’s heavy rare earth metal supply. It also produces 90% of the magnets made from rare earths. Now, many shipments are stuck at Chinese ports. A new export license system is being planned, but it could take at least 45 days to issue a license. This delay is already affecting countries like the U.S., Japan, and Germany. This crisis is a wake-up call. It is also a chance for India.

India Critical Minerals Reserve

India has large reserves of critical minerals. For example, India has around 163.9 million tonnes of copper ore and 44.9 million tonnes of cobalt ore. But only about 20% of its mineral-rich land has been explored. This means there is a lot of untapped potential.

Anil Agarwal, Chairman of Vedanta, had earlier explained how rare earths are linked to global power he said, "Rare earths are a set of 17 minerals without which you would not have smartphones, smart TVs or practically any cutting-edge technology."

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He added that China controls most of the supply. This gives it great influence over the world. The U.S. is now trying to restart production at its Mountain Pass mine. Japan has stockpiled rare earths. But many countries, including the U.S., still depend on Chinese supply.

"India can fill this gap. But it needs to act fast," he added.

National Critical Minerals Mission

In 2024, the Indian government launched the National Critical Minerals Mission. The goal is to build the full supply chain—from finding the minerals to recycling them. The Ministry of Mines has also focused 50% of new exploration projects on minerals like lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and molybdenum.

India is also making laws to support this effort. From the financial year 2027–28, all new non-ferrous products must have at least 5% recycled content. This will help reduce imports and create a more sustainable system.

Anil Agarwal believes this is the moment for India to step up. He said, "India actually has the 5th largest reserves of rare earths in the world. But we are producing small quantities. It can give us a lot of leverage in the world."

He urged the country to focus on this sector fully: "Let us focus on this one thing. Sau sunaar ki ek lohaar ki."

Demand For Critical Minerals

The International Energy Agency (IEA) says the market for minerals like copper, lithium, and cobalt will more than double by 2040. BloombergNEF estimates the world will need 3 billion tonnes of critical minerals by 2050 to meet climate goals—and 6 billion tonnes to reach net zero.