mineral · input
Heavy rare earth (0.1-1 wt%) used with dysprosium to reduce magnet mass while maintaining high-temperature performance; virtually all production from China ionic clays; <1,000 MT/year global supply
4
Source countries
4
Companies
1
Goods affected
0
Claims on record
What depends on it
1 essential American goods rely on terbium (tb) metal somewhere upstream in their supply chain.
Where it comes from
Share of global supply, by country.
| Country | Share of supply |
|---|---|
| CNChina | 95% |
| MMMyanmar | 3% |
| AUAustralia | 2% |
| USUnited States | 0% |
Who makes it
4 companies produce terbium (tb) metal.
State-controlled enterprise dominating heavy rare earth production from ionic clay deposits in southern China (Jiangxi, Guangdong, Fujian). Principal supplier of dysprosium and terbium globally. Formed 2011 by consolidation of six regional rare earth companies under SASAC mandate.
State-owned rare earth conglomerate (~18% global lanthanum oxide market share); consolidated under China Minmetals Corp via SASAC-directed mergers with Chinalco (2021), Xiamen Tungsten (2023), and Guangdong Rare Earths Group (2024). In April-May 2025, SASAC centralized China's national rare earth minerals strategy under China Minmetals with 'full-chain control' enforcement — export licensing, SOE discipline, data traceability — representing a significant consolidation of state control over rare earth exports.
Chinese rare earth company; significant minority investor in MP Materials (Mountain Pass CA) and off-take agreement holder for Mountain Pass concentrate — giving a Chinese state-linked company commercial involvement in the only US rare earth mine. This relationship has drawn US national security scrutiny. Shenghe processes the Mountain Pass concentrate in China and sells back NdPr oxide. Also has separate mining interests in Africa (Sierra Leone, Guinea) and operations in Australia.
Australian rare earth mining and processing company (ASX: LYC, HQ Kuala Lumpur/Perth); world's largest rare earth producer outside China. Mines at Mount Weld, Western Australia (one of the world's highest-grade rare earth deposits) and processes at LAMP (Lynas Advanced Materials Plant) in Kuantan, Malaysia. Produces separated rare earth oxides including lanthanum oxide, LREE carbonate, neodymium-praseodymium oxide. Lanthanum from Lynas is a byproduct of Nd/Pr production — lanthanum has limited premium uses and Lynas has at times struggled to find buyers for its lanthanum output. Lynas is also building a heavy rare earth processing facility in Kalgoorlie, Australia and an NdPr separation facility in Seadrift, Texas (DoD-funded) to establish non-China rare earth processing.
