Germany slightly reduced rare earth reliance on China in 2024, export controls loom

The majority of rare earth imports into Germany in 2024 came from China, according to data by the country's statistical offce (Destatis). Rare earth elements are important minerals for the production of energy transition technologies like batteries, semiconductors and motors.

Imports of rare earth elements to Germany decreased 13 percent in 2024 compared to the previous year. The majority of these (65.5%) came from China, a drop of 3.6 percentage points from 2023, The average share of rare earth imports from China for EU states stands at 46 percent. Neighbouring Austria was Germany's second most important country of origin at 23.2 percent, followed by Estonia at 5.6 percent. Further processing of rare earths in countries like Austria or Estonia means the country of origin can’t be identified and are therefore attributed to the countries in which they’re processed.

A total of 12,900 tonnes of rare earths worth 101 million euros were imported into the EU in 2024, Destatis said based on data by European statistics authority Eurostat. Rare earths are considered strategic materials and the EU plans to strengthen its own production and recycling of these critical energy transition materials. By 2030, the bloc aims to import no more than 65 percent of demand for rare earths from one particular country. However, this is more difficult to implement for some rare earths than for others. For example, of all of the cerium and lanthanum imported into the EU in 2024, 99.3 percent came from China.

In the trade conflict escalated against China by the US administration of president Donald Trump, the Chinese government has imposed export controls on many rare earth minerals. Matthias Rüth, CEO of meatal trading company Tradium, told news station ntv that the Chinese export controls had caused significant tensions on the market, as companies are uncertain how prices will develop. "There are only very limited alternatives" to Chinese sourcing, Rüth said, arguing that companies in Germany would have to stockpile rare earth imports to shield themselves from any greater market disturbances. If imports came to a halt in the wake of an intensifying trade conflict, the supply to German companies would collapse "in just a few weeks," he cautioned.

In a bid to diversify its sources of energy transition materials, Germany entered into a partnership with Serbia late last year to strengthen the trade of lithium between the two countries, with further plans to mine for rare earths in the latter. A report published last year found that Germany could also cover part of its demand for other critical materials, like copper and lithium, through domestic production.