Rare Earths, Permanent Magnets and Myanmar:

Rare earths seem to make headlines on a regular basis, recently due to even stronger export restrictions from China. Also the fact that 2/3 of the highly disputed heavy rare earth minerals Dyprosium and Terbium needed for permanent magnets for wind turbines and electric come from the civil war-torn country Myanmar has made headlines in the past months. They are extracted in Myanmar and exported to the world by China, which supplies more than 90% of the EU’s permanent magnets. At the same time, India is also seeking its way to get direct access to these minerals.

Supply security of these minerals is imperilled by the extraction in Myanmar. Since the military coup in 2021, the country has been partially under the control of a military dictatorship. Most of the mines are located in Kachin State, where fighting between the military junta and ethnic revolutionary  organiszations makes it nearly impossible to uphold human and labour rights in mining. Mining has now spread to northern Shan State as well as neighbouring Laos.

Mining is largely unregulated and often carried out using illegal methods, leading to severe environmental damage, including water pollution and soil contamination. Its impacts extend beyond borders, with unsafe levels of arsenic and other heavy metals now detected in several rivers in Thailand.

Despite the immense challenges and an environmental crisis unfolding on a regional scale, there are opportunities to solve these problems. In a closed door multi-stakeholder session we want to explore the situation on the ground and discuss and identify leverage for improvement. 

The expert discussion aims to facilitate an exchange with actors from business, politics, and civil society from Europe and Myanmar. The goal is to get a better understanding of the situation and to develop concrete approaches and recommendations to improve the current situation.

With:

• Dan Seng Lawn, Director, Kachinland Research Centre
• Erik Post EPRM Secretariat
• Cecilia Mattea Regional Lead IRMA
• Philippe Giaro, Senior Research Officer​,GeMMe - Georesources, Mineral Engineering & Extractive Metallurgy University of Liège
• Frederic Muduraud (External Action Service) tbc

Facilitation: Johanna Sydow, Heinrich-Böll-Foundation, Berlin

The event will take place under Chatham House Rule. 

Information: sydow@boell.de

Location: Mariveaux Hotel
Boulevard Adolphe Max 98
1000 Brussels
Belgium