• Rare earth reserves by country 2020

China's reserves of rare earths amounted to an estimated 44 million metric tons of rare earth oxide equivalent (REO) in 2021, thereby making it the world's leading country based on reserves of rare earths.

Global snapshot of rare earth reserves

According to estimates, the total worldwide reserves of rare earths amount to approximately 120 million metric tons. Most of these reserves are located within China, estimated at some 44 million metric tons. After China, the major rare earth countries based on reserve volume are Vietnam, Brazil, and Russia. The United States also has significant reserves, estimated to amount to 1.8 million metric tons.

The largest rare earth producers

With over 168,000 metric tons produced from mines in 2021, China was also the world's largest producer of rare earths that year. China produces most of its rare earths in the southeastern part of the country, such as in the provinces Jiangxi and Fujian, however production also occurs in other parts of the country such as Inner Mongolia and Sichuan. The United States, which is the second largest producer of rare earths from mines, extracted some 43,000 metric tons of these mineral commodities in the same year.

Breakdown of rare earth elements: end uses and different types

Rare earth elements, also called rare earth metals, are a group of 17 chemical elements. The largest subgroup within it are the 15 lanthanides. The two other elements are scandium and yttrium. Based on quantity, the lanthanides cerium, lanthanum and neodymium are the most produced rare earths elements. Yttrium, one of the rare earths that was explored first, got its name from the town where it was discovered – Ytterby, Sweden. Nowadays, rare earth elements are crucial for a number of key technologies such as medical technology and energy technology. They are used, among many other things, for lasers, battery electrodes, magnets, MRI contrast agents, catalysts, alloys, etc. It is expected that in the near future, most of the rare earth metals produced will be needed for manufacturing magnets and metal alloys.