MALAYSIA’S REE EXPORTS NOT LIMITED TO US – ARTHUR

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 5 (Bernama) -- Malaysia’s exports of rare earth elements (REE) are not limited to the United States (US) despite the existence of the Malaysia-US Reciprocal Trade Agreement (RTA), says Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup.

Arthur said the agreement did not stipulate any exclusive commitments, supply obligations or market preferences that would bind Malaysia to export REE to any particular country.

“The Malaysian government also wishes to stress that REE has never been offered as a concession or quid pro quo in any trade or tariff negotiations with the United States,” he said when winding up the debate on the motion of thanks for the Royal Address for his ministry in the Dewan Rakyat today.

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He said that in line with current national policy, Malaysia continued to maintain a ban on the export of raw REE to ensure that the strategic resource was not exploited without value addition and to encourage the development of the entire domestic industry value chain, including processing, research and development and domestic product manufacturing.

“This policy was formulated with due consideration for the country’s long-term interests, the division of jurisdiction between the Federal Government and state governments, and the need to ensure that the development of the REE industry is carried out in a sustainable and responsible manner,” he said.

Responding to an interjection by Fathul Huzir Ayob (PN-Gerik) on whether the government planned to open more REE mines in the near term, Arthur said the REE industry in Malaysia was still at an early stage as the country was not yet ready in terms of expertise and technology to fully utilise REE resources.

In addition, he said the country did not have processing plants to extract high-value REE from local sources, thereby slowing down the development of the industry.

“At the Federal Government level, we set forward-looking policies relating to the REE industry. However, any specific matters on mining permits fall under the jurisdiction of state governments, which determine the sites permitted for mining activities,” he said.

Meanwhile, commenting on the National Groundwater Resources Mapping and Assessment Project, Arthur said the project was being actively implemented in several states such as Kedah, Melaka, Sabah and Kelantan.

He said the project in Kedah was fully completed in 2025, in Melaka, it was being implemented and expected to be completed this year, while in Sabah and Kelantan, it was at an early implementation phase and expected to be completed in 2028 and 2029, respectively.

“Subsequently, the mapping project in other states will be implemented in stages, subject to approval of allocations under the Rolling Plan of the 13th Malaysia Plan,” he said.

The National Groundwater Resources Mapping and Assessment Project focuses on assessing groundwater potential and identifying potential areas as well as fields that can be developed to address the impact of global climate change expected to affect the country in the future.

-- BERNAMA