Highlights

• Baogang Group's iron-bearing rock recovery system has been certified as a 'patent-intensive product' by Inner Mongolia authorities.
• This certification demonstrates strong IP protection and industrial significance through multiple core patents spanning the full development chain.
• The system has produced over 10.24 million metric tons of coarse iron concentrate at the Bayan Obo mine.
• The recovery system improves resource utilization, extends mine life, and reduces environmental impact.
• This aligns with China's dual-carbon objectives.
• This development highlights China's competitive advantage in beneficiation technology.
• The strategy involves using IP-driven process innovation to extract more value from existing mines rather than relying on new permitting.
• The model is positioned as replicable across complex ore bodies globally.

Baogang Group announced that a project developed by its Mining Research Institute—an iron-bearing valuable rock recovery system development service—has been officially certified by the Inner Mongolia Intellectual Property Administration as a “patent-intensive product.” The designation highlights both the project’s strong intellectual-property moat and its growing industrial and environmental significance.

The certified system targets a long-standing technical challenge at the Bayan Obo mining complex, one of the world’s most strategically important deposits for iron and rare earth elements. According to the report interpreted by Rare Earth Exchanges™, the breakthrough enables the efficient separation and recovery of iron-bearing valuable rock that would otherwise be lost to tailings. Unlike single-patent solutions, the project is supported by multiple core patents spanning the full process chain, from R&D through on-site deployment—creating a defensible, end-to-end technology platform.

According to Baogang, the system has already delivered measurable commercial results. To date, it has produced more than 10.24 million metric tons of coarse iron concentrate, materially improving overall resource utilization at Bayan Obo. For a mine of this scale, incremental recovery gains translate into significant economic value, extended mine life, and reduced pressure on upstream extraction.

Beyond near-term output, the project is positioned as a structural response to mining’s “high consumption, low efficiency” problem—a theme increasingly central to China’s industrial policy. By reducing waste rock losses and tailings volumes, the system lowers environmental impact at the source while aligning with China’s national dual-carbon (emissions and efficiency) objectives. Baogang argues the model is replicable across other complex ore bodies, effectively exporting a “Baogang solution” for greener mining.

For Western observers, the implications extend beyond a single patent award. This development illustrates how China’s vertically integrated resource groups are using IP strategy, process innovation, and state-aligned incentives to extract more value from existing mines, rather than relying solely on new permitting. It also reinforces China’s competitive advantage in low-cost, high-efficiency beneficiation technologies, an area where U.S. and allied mining sectors often lag due to fragmented R&D and slower commercialization.

Looking ahead to China’s next five-year planning cycle (“15th Five-Year Plan”), Baogang’s Mining Research Institute says it will accelerate work on green, digital, and integrated mining systems, pushing the sector toward more efficient extraction, cleaner processing, and intelligent operational control. Rare Earth Exchanges will monitor.

Disclaimer

This news item originates from Baogang Daily, a publication of a Chinese state-owned enterprise. The information presented should be independently verified before forming business, investment, or policy conclusions.