Recently, there has been a major breakthrough in mineral exploration in the Maoniuping mining area of Mianning County, Sichuan Province. After verification and exploration, the total amount of rare earth oxide resources in the entire area has reached 9.6656 million tons, and 27.1354 million tons of associated ultra large fluorite ore and 37.2277 million tons of barite ore have been discovered. This achievement has officially surpassed the Mangtingpas rare earth mine in the United States, making Maoniuping the second largest light rare earth deposit in the country and the world. As a result, China's light rare earth resource pattern has moved from a unipolar support of Baiyun Obo to a new stage of bipolar drive.

Rare earths are not soil, nor are they rare, and they are named after the difficulty of extraction. As a collective term for 17 key metal elements including lanthanides, rare earths are widely used in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and defense technology, transforming from industrial vitamins to industrial necessities. Maoniuping is not a new mine, but a new generation of old mines. As early as 1986, geological team member Pu Guangping discovered fluorocarbon cerium ore here; In 2024, a breakthrough will be achieved in deep exploration, with a reserve increase of over 200% compared to the previous 3.16 million tons. Experts point out that this mine has the same genesis as Baiyun Ebo and has the advantages of high grade and easy mining.

The biggest highlight of this exploration is the comprehensive value of one mine and three uses. Except for rare earths, the accompanying fluorite and barite are all rare earth mineral coexisting minerals. Fluorite is a key chemical material for the manufacturing of new energy batteries and chips; Barite is a weighting agent for petroleum drilling and a raw material for medical barium meal. This scarce associated combination doubles the economic value of the mineral deposit. Keywords: rare earth ore, mining

With the formation of a super large rare earth base with a capacity of millions of tons, the rare earth industry in Sichuan will usher in a burst of resource confidence. Against the backdrop of intensified global rare earth competition, the rise of Maoniuping not only adds double insurance to China's supply chain security, but also provides solid raw material support for the country's strategic emerging industries.Editor/Cheng Liting