US Critical Materials announces major discovery of gallium

Gallium is consistently listed as the number one supply risk related to National Security, as the US is 100% dependent on imported gallium, primarily from China. The Chinese government has recently embargoed the export of gallium, which is critical for national defence and many other vital applications. Gallium is used for semiconductors, 5G technology, smartphones, satellite systems, critical photonics technologies, and especially current and next generation defence systems.

In December 2023, US Critical Materials announced that it had signed an agreement with Idaho National Laboratories (INL) to develop new rare earth processing methods including gallium separation. It is believed that cutting-edge technologies developed under this Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) could potentially provide environmentally responsible mining and processing to mitigate environmental concerns.

James Hedrick, US Critical Materials President, and a 29-year former USGS and Bureau of Mines Rare Earth Commodity Specialist, said, “Not only is our gallium high-grade, but we are also confident that we will be able to create a separation process that will be environmentally respectful. US Critical Materials prime gallium claims average over 300 ppm and go as high as 1370 ppm. Gallium can be separated profitably at 50 ppm. US Critical Materials looks forward to being the primary gallium producer in the US.”

Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/mining/25032024/us-critical-materials-announces-major-discovery-of-gallium/