Rare Earth Exchanges

Chinese Spy Agency Cracks down on Rare Earth Element Smugglers

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Highlights

  • China’s Ministry of State Security exposed a smuggling attempt of gallium, a rare mineral essential for military and electronics industries.
  • China produces nearly 98% of the world’s raw gallium supply, primarily as a byproduct of bauxite processing.
  • Two suspects, Du and Tang, were involved in an attempted illegal shipment of the strategically controlled material.

Earlier this month in the South China Morning Post (SCMP) an English-language newspaper based in Hong Kong reported (opens in a new tab) that China’s top spy agency had a tip-off leading to case cracked involving the smuggling of gallium. An essential rare mineral for military radar units subject to export controls, the Ministry of State Security (MSS) announced a crackdown on such theft.

MSS issued a report on its official WeChat channel announcing that a foreign national was planning to ship the material out of China. That suspect’s name had the last name of Du.

According to a policy report Du was apparently working for an employee of a Chinese metal company—this other suspect’s last name is Tang. Apparently, Du did not know that gallium is a controlled substance in China.

Gallium is a soft, silvery-white metal, like aluminum. Uses. Gallium arsenide has a similar structure to silicon and is a useful silicon substitute for the electronics industry. It is an important component of many semiconductors.

Most gallium is mined in China, which produces around 98% of the world's raw gallium supply. 

Explanation: Gallium is primarily extracted as a byproduct when processing bauxite for aluminum production, and China dominates the global bauxite mining industry, leading to its dominance in gallium production. 

Key points about gallium mining:

  • China's dominance: China accounts for nearly all the world's raw gallium production. 
  • Byproduct extraction: Most gallium is obtained as a byproduct while processing other minerals like bauxite. 
  • Strategic concerns: Due to China's near monopoly on gallium, concerns exist about potential disruptions to the supply chain for critical technologies that rely on gallium.

South China Morning Post is owned by the Alibaba Group.

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