Korea-China Rare Earth New Material Technology Cooperation Forum Opens... "Enhancing Competitiveness in Materials and Components"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] A forum for technological cooperation in the rare earth new materials sector between Korea and China is set to take place.

The 'Korea-China Rare Earth New Materials Technology Development Seminar,' hosted by the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology and the Korea-China Science and Technology Cooperation Center, and supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Incheon Metropolitan City, will be held on the 7th at G-Tower in Songdo, Incheon.

Rare earth elements refer to 17 elements including cerium, lanthanum, and neodymium. Due to their excellent chemical properties such as thermal conductivity and magnetism, they are core materials used not only in advanced industries like smartphones and electric vehicles but also in military weapons.

Due to environmental pollution during the refining process, China accounts for more than 70% of the world's production, making rare earths increasingly important as strategic materials subject to regional concentration.

Domestic imports of rare earth materials have been increasing annually. According to the Trade Statistics Promotion Institute, Korea's rare earth imports were 2,850 tons in 2016 and 3,246 tons in 2018. However, due to a lack of core technological capabilities and a weak industrial base, corporate activities have been concentrated in low value-added areas such as simple processing of imported materials.

With the growing importance of rare earths from the perspective of fostering core material industries, this seminar is evaluated as an opportunity to actively initiate technological cooperation with China in the field of rare earth-based new materials.

It also secured an opportunity to establish practical networks with research institutions and industries in Jiangxi Province (江西省), China’s largest heavy rare earth mining and processing region.

The seminar will feature presentations and in-depth discussions by experts from both countries on various fields including rare earth recycling, materials, markets, and standards development. A separate session for technological cooperation and exchange among participating institutions has also been arranged.

Kang Kyung-sung, Director of the Materials, Parts, and Equipment Industry Policy Division at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated, "The rare earth sector is the foundation of competitiveness in the materials and parts industry. We hope that this seminar will lead to more tangible results in private-sector technological cooperation between the two countries."

He added, "The government will also concretize policy efforts this year to revitalize and expand the base of the rare earth and rare metals industry overall by securing core technologies and strengthening the functions of specialized institutions such as the Rare Metals Center."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.