China was prepared to provide Malaysia technical and technological assistance in rare earths processing, though it has asked for any cooperation to involve only state-linked companies, the Southeast Asian country said on Wednesday.
Malaysia has been seeking to develop its capabilities in rare earths mining and processing, as it looks to capitalise on rising global demand for critical minerals used widely in semiconductor chips, electric vehicles and military equipment.
China, the world's top miner and processor of rare earths, has been increasingly protective of its dominance in the sector, imposing export restrictions on some of its processing technology.
In a written parliamentary reply, Malaysia's Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Johari Abdul Ghani said Chinese President Xi Jinping had conveyed Beijing's readiness to help Malaysia in its rare earths ambitions during a visit to Kuala Lumpur in April.
"Considering that technology safeguarding is of great importance to China, he (Xi) requested that the cooperation only involve government-linked companies," Johari said, adding that discussions remained in the early stages and no agreement between the two countries has been reached.
Johari said China's assistance in the matter was crucial given its global dominance, particularly in the separation of rare earth elements.
It would also grow Malaysia's reputation in the sector as the only country to feature both Chinese and non-Chinese processing technology, Johari said, referring to a rare earths processing plant operated by Australian miner Lynas in Malaysia's Pahang state.
In a separate reply on Wednesday, Johari said Malaysia had some 16.1 million metric tons of rare earth deposits, according to a 2019 estimate by Malaysia's Minerals and Geosciences Department.
He cautioned, however, that more research was needed to determine how much can be mined, with policies in place to ban mining in permanent forests, environmentally sensitive areas and protected reserves.
