The Government of Quebec has committed up to C$7 million ($4.9m) for the demonstration phase. Eventually, the extraction potential of a commercial-scale plant could reach 40 tonnes annually, representing between 5 and 10% of current world gallium production, Rio said.
Primary gallium is used in key sectors, including the manufacture of integrated circuits, which are of vital importance in many new technologies such as high-performance radar, smartphones, electric cars and laptops.
It is also a material on the export ban list to the United States that China’s Ministry of Commerce announced last week.
‘‘This new research and development project is destined to help strengthen the North American supply chain for critical and strategic minerals,” Jérôme Pécresse, chief executive, Rio Tinto Aluminium, said in the statement.
“As many important steps are yet to be achieved, Rio Tinto is…
