Trend Rising, geographically concentrated demand for critical minerals

Summary

The report defines critical minerals as those that are vital to the economy while facing major risks to the security of their supply. Many are produced in small volumes or as by-products of other mining, are hard to substitute and are rarely recycled. Global use of raw materials keeps rising as living standards improve and clean energy technologies spread. The report argues that shifting away from technologies that burn fuel toward ones that consume materials creates a new weakness in energy systems. Mining and processing for many critical minerals are concentrated in fewer places than oil or gas, and because of by-product status and long lead times, supply responds poorly to demand shocks. The report concludes that this breeds over-reliance on particular countries and further unsettles already volatile supply chains.