Charting USA’s Import Reliance of Key Minerals

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The United States is heavily reliant on imports for many key minerals, including rare earths, natural graphite, and gallium. This reliance on imports leaves the United States vulnerable to supply chain disruptions, as seen with China's recent export restrictions on gallium and germanium.

The United States is also 100% import reliant for several other minerals, such as arsenic, fluorspar, indium, manganese, niobium, and tantalum. These minerals are essential for a variety of applications, including the production of alloys and semiconductors.

The United States government has recognized the need to reduce its reliance on imports for critical minerals. In 2022, the government released a list of 50 critical minerals, and it is working to develop strategies to increase domestic production and processing of these minerals.

The announcement of China's export restrictions has only highlighted the importance of this work. The United States and other nations need to take steps to reduce their reliance on imports for critical minerals and diversify their supply chains.

The article which I have heavily summarised contains a couple of images and charts that illuminate this article.

Some references for the 2022 list of 50 critical minerals released by the US government:

2022 Final List of Critical Minerals: https://www.federalregister.gov/docu...tical-minerals

Final List of Critical Minerals 2022 – Policies: https://www.iea.org/policies/15271-f...-minerals-2022

U.S. Geological Survey Releases 2022 List of Critical Minerals: https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-n...tical-minerals

What Are Critical Materials and Critical Minerals?: https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-...tical-minerals