French rare earth technology company Carester and Malaysia’s Malaco Mining Group have agreed to cooperate on the development of a rare earth separation plant and to explore broader collaboration in rare earth mining, marking a new step in international efforts to diversify critical mineral supply chains.
The partnership, currently at a pilot stage, will focus on building a rare earth separation facility in Malaysia. According to Benjamin Gallezot, adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron on strategic minerals, the agreement предусматривает передачу технологий Malaco, а также поддержку в вопросах экологического соответствия и соблюдения международных стандартов.
The project comes as Western economies intensify efforts to reduce dependence on China, which dominates global rare earth production and processing. Rare earth elements are essential inputs for electric vehicles, renewable energy technologies, smartphones and other high-tech applications.
Malaysia holds an estimated 16.1 million tonnes of rare earth resources but has so far lacked the technological capability to mine and process them domestically. Cooperation with Carester is expected to help close this gap, particularly in separation technologies required before rare earths can be used in permanent magnets and clean technology manufacturing.
Gallezot said Malaco is already in discussions with several European magnet manufacturers, though specific companies were not named. He also noted interest from Japan, suggesting the project could attract a wider group of international partners.
In parallel, Gallezot said G7 countries plan to engage with partners outside the group on critical minerals during meetings this year, underlining the growing role of international cooperation in securing diversified and resilient supply chains.
