RE: This stock is broken27 Jul 2023 14:47
'Pentagon Seeks Supply of Chip-Mineral Gallium After China Curbs Exports
The Pentagon plans to issue a first-time contract to US or Canadian companies by year-end to recover gallium, a mineral used in semiconductors and military radar systems, after China curbed exports this month.
The curbs prompted US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to voice her concern during a recent visit to Beijing.
The Pentagon, which has reserves of germanium but not gallium, plans to use its authority under the Defense Production Act for “prioritizing awards” by Dec. 31, “focusing on recovery of gallium from existing waste streams of other products,” spokesman Jeff Jurgensen said in a statement.
“Recovery, not mining, is the fastest way to make the materials more available in the US,” the Pentagon said. DPA funds previously “have not been awarded for minerals recycling projects.”
Gallium and germanium are typically extracted during mining operations for other materials. But it’s expensive to process and refine them so they have often been treated as waste by western companies, while China came to dominate the supply.'