Article

2023-09-23 Economy

China just stopped exporting two minerals the world's chipmakers need

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Posted by Grom the Reflective 2023-09-23 05:03|| || Front Page|| [8 views ] Top
File under: Commies

#1 I can't help wondering just how much gallium and geranium there is in the US that we can't mine because of green fantasies.

Posted by Tom 2023-09-23 10:39|| 2023-09-23 10:39|| Front Page Top

#2 USGS: gallium deposits

USGS: germanium deposits

Posted by trailing wife 2023-09-23 14:35|| 2023-09-23 14:35|| Front Page Top

#3 Also:

Pentagon Has Strategic Germanium Stockpile but No Gallium Reserves

[USNews] The Pentagon holds a strategic U.S. stockpile for germanium but currently has no inventory reserves for gallium, a spokesperson said on Thursday, after China announced export restrictions on the two metals used in semiconductors.

"The (Defense) Department is proactively taking steps using Defense Production Act Title III authorities to increase domestic mining and processing of critical materials for the microelectronics and space supply chain, including gallium and germanium," the spokesperson said.

Germanium is used in high-speed computer chips, plastics and military applications such as night-vision devices, as well as satellite imagery sensors. Gallium is used in radar and radio communication devices, satellites and LEDs.

China's abrupt announcement on Monday of controls from Aug. 1 on exports of some gallium and germanium products, also used in electric vehicles (EVs) and fibre optic cables, has sent companies scrambling to secure supplies and bumped up prices.

While major defense contractors like Lockheed Martin Corp may not buy gallium and germanium directly, they likely purchase semiconductors from suppliers who source Chinese gallium and germanium, said Arun Seraphin, executive director for the National Defense Industrial Association’s Emerging Technologies Institute.

Restrictions on that supply potentially “slows down the production of DoD systems” or “ratchets up the cost,” he said.

However, Dak Hardwick, vice president of international affairs at the Aerospace Industries Association, said the export restrictions will likely have little short-term impact for defense companies, which tend to buy materials for critical systems far in advance.

Posted by trailing wife 2023-09-23 14:38|| 2023-09-23 14:38|| Front Page Top

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