Agenda
Half Day Pre-Summit Symposium
Status & Outlook for Critical Metals:
Supply, Demand, Risks and Price
October 25, 2010
Internationally recognized experts will provide an up-to-the-minute assessment of the supply and value chain outlook for critical and strategic metals by cluster (metals produced together). Industry leaders will match geological, economic and political risk factors (and their interactions) against demand trends, extrapolating emerging bottlenecks and tracking resource development initiatives that may cure those constrained areas.
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Rare Earths Outlook
October 26-27, 2010
The global cleantech boom has an Achilles heel: rare earth metals. The volume and cost of the 17 ‘electrically active’ rare earth metals may be small in the big scheme of things. Yet, without them, entire industries, the growth engines of the global economy – computing, displays, lighting, sensors, fiber optics, wind and photovoltaics, aerospace, electric vehicles, and defense – would go belly up.
Now, what many warned about has come to pass: an astounding 72% cut in rare earth exports from China (from 2009 levels). Prices for many rare earths were already rising in anticipation of the planned cut, and now — steeper than anyone expected — the cut will most likely lead to price spikes. The impacts are both negative - tech OEMs must decide whether to move factories to China or put entire product lines and shareholder value at risk - and positive - higher prices make it easier for new mining prospects outside China to raise funding.
Unfortunately, few, if any, of the mines will be producing before 2015. How will end users and the entire rare metals value chain navigate this new gap? Sourcing, strategy and R&D executives are just starting to wake up to the issue. The US Department of Energy aims to have an initial public strategic assessment in late October, and other governments are scrambling to devise solutions on behalf of their own industries. However, the number of OEMs with well thought-out strategies is few. Some are already making moves to secure long-term supply at favorable prices by inking deals directly with mines.
Building on its two previous events, Infocast’s Critical and Rare Metals Summit III: Rare Earths Outlook will be the definitive meeting point for global industrials and cleantech companies, investors, mining juniors, policy makers, defense organizations and other value chain players. New challenges include: developing more robust supply chain strategies, the needing to boot up expensive refineries alongside new mines, securing support from governments, and implementing recycling and technical strategies. This event will put all of these developments into a unified perspective, providing the very latest numbers, dates and insights from key players. Anyone with a stake in cleantech, high tech manufacturing, specialty metals mining, or renewable energy investing and policy cannot afford to miss this pivotal event.
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