Central Asia Moves Downstream as U.S., China and Europe Compete for Rare Earths, Tungsten and Uranium

Highlights

• Central Asia is shifting from raw ore export to midstream processing, with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan pursuing rare earth separation, tungsten intermediates and nuclear fuel fabrication.
• Lindian Resources' acquisition of Kazakhstan's SARECO facility illustrates how brownfield processing infrastructure compresses the dangerous gap between Western policy intent and actual material supply.
• China already controls producing mineral and uranium operations across the region, while most Western and allied projects remain at financing or feasibility stages.
• Tajikistan exported 100% of its antimony output to China in 2024, demonstrating how Western governments often negotiate for geology while China finances industrial ecosystems.
• REEx identifies four traits of winning Central Asian projects: verified resources, operating chemistry, committed offtake buyers, and multiple sovereign routes to market.