Minamitorishima [Photo courtesy of Kyodo News]

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) reported on the 29th that Japan, which is pushing to reduce its dependence on China for rare earths in response to Chinese export restrictions, will begin a demonstration project for rare earths mined in the Pacific Ocean next year.

The Japanese government plans to verify the economic feasibility of rare earths mined from Minamitorishima, an island in the Ogasawara archipelago located approximately 1,900 km southeast of Tokyo.

According to the report, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to issue instructions regarding this plan to relevant cabinet ministers at a meeting of the Headquarters for Ocean Policy today.

In 2012, the Japanese government discovered deep-sea mud containing high concentrations of rare earths on the seafloor at a depth of approximately 6,000 meters within Minamitorishima's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

At the time, analysis by institutions including the University of Tokyo estimated that the surrounding rare earth reserves amounted to approximately 6.8 million tons. Japan's annual consumption of rare earths is around 20,000 tons.

The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) research vessel 'Chikyu' successfully conducted test mining of rare earths at a depth of about 6,000 meters off the coast of Minamitorishima last February.

Nikkei reported that while only a small amount has been mined on a trial basis so far, the project will now move to a large-scale demonstration phase to confirm whether the materials can be utilized in industries such as automotive components.

In the demonstration phase, the plan is to verify economic feasibility by extracting, transporting, and smelting more than 350 tons of mud per day.

Nikkei noted that if Japan is able to produce rare earths domestically through these efforts, it would hold significant implications for economic security.

The Japanese government aims to begin full-scale commercial use after 2028.

Although Japan relies on China for its rare earth imports, China banned the export of dual-use goods for military purposes, including rare earths, in January following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks suggesting intervention in the event of a contingency in Taiwan.

Consequently, China's exports of rare earth magnets to Japan decreased by 34.5% in May compared to the previous month.