SANGDONG, South Korea : Blue tungsten winking from the walls of abandoned mine shafts, in a town that's seen better days, could be a catalyst for South Korea's bid to break China's dominance of critical minerals and stake its claim to the raw materials of the future.
Overall demand for such rare minerals is expected to increase four-fold by 2040, the International Energy Agency said last year. For those used in electric vehicles and battery storage, demand is projected to grow 30-fold, it added. China controls over 80 per cent of global tungsten supplies, according to CRU Group, London-based commodity analysts.
Sangdong's tungsten, discovered in 1916 during the Japanese colonial era, was once a backbone of the South Korean economy, accounting for 70 per cent of the country's export earnings in the 1960s when it was largely used in metal-cutting tools. "We should keep running this kind of mine so that new technologies can be handed over to the next generations," said Kang Dong-hoon, a manager in Sangdong, where a"Pride of Korea" sign is displayed on a wall of the mine office.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
North Korea fires possible ballistic missile: Japan military, South Korea mediaSEOUL: North Korea fired what could be a ballistic missile on Saturday (May 7), Japan\u0027s military and South Korean media said. South Korea\u0027s military said North Korea fired a projectile off its east coast, and Yonhap news agency said the military believed it was a ballistic missile. Japan\u0027s d
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »
North Korea fires short-range ballistic missile: South Korea militarySEOUL: North Korea fired a ballistic missile on Saturday (May 7), South Korean military said, three days before the inauguration of South Korean president-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed t From Pyongyang to Pyongyang?
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »
North Korea fires unidentified projectile: Seoul
Source: STForeignDesk - 🏆 4. / 71 Read more »
K-pop cheerleaders: The 'flowers' of South Korean baseballINCHEON — In baseball-mad South Korea teams of professional cheerleaders pumping up players and fans with elaborate K-pop routines are as integral to the games as beer and fried chicken.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »
First cholera outbreak since 2017 kills 1 in South Sudan
Source: STForeignDesk - 🏆 4. / 71 Read more »
South Korea's new president set to get tough on NorthSEOUL: South Korea\u0027s hawkish new president will be sworn in Tuesday (May 10), and he looks set to get tough with Pyongyang, departing from what he has called the \u0022subservient\u0022 approach of his predecessor. For the past five years, Seoul has pursued a policy of engagement with North Korea, brokering summits Invade them imo Singing to the tune of the US but remember they are Korean too ! How tough ?
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »