Context:
The first-ever International Energy Agency (IEA) Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Summit held at Paris, France recently.
Highlights of the Summit:
- 6 key actions for secure, sustainable and responsible supply chains –
- Advancing the goal of diversified mineral supplies
- Maximising the potential of technology and recycling
- Fostering market transparency
- Improving the accessibility of trustworthy information
- Establishing incentives for sustainable and responsible production
- Stepping up efforts to foster international cooperation
About Critical minerals:
- These are minerals that are essential for economic development and national security.
- The lack of availability of these minerals or the concentration of extraction or processing in a few geographical locations could potentially lead to “supply chain vulnerabilities and even disruption of supplies”.
- Earlier, India has identified 30 critical minerals which include cobalt, copper, lithium, nickel etc.
- Declaration of Critical Minerals – United States (50), Japan (34), UK (18), and Canada (31).
- Significance – Advancement of high-tech electronics, telecommunications, transport etc.; Manufacturing technologies and materials used in aerospace and defence sector etc.
As per IEA, market for critical minerals has grown by a factor of two over the previous five years (2017- 2022) and reached $320 billion in 2022. For instance, demand for lithium from energy sector tripled.
About IEA:
- Established in 1974
- Primary objectives –
- Safeguarding the availability of oil resources
- Ensuring energy security continues to be a fundamental component of its mission.
- Headquarters: Paris
- Membership: 31 countries (India is not a member).
- India is part of ‘association countries’ of IEA.
Source: Down to Earth
Previous Year Question
With reference to India, consider the following statements:
1. Monazite is a source of rare earths.
2. Monazite contains thorium.
3. Monazite occurs naturally in the entire Indian coastal sands in India.
4. In India, Government bodies only can process or export monazite.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1, 2 and 3 only
(b) 1, 2 and 4 only
(c) 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
Answer: (b)
Explanation:
Monazite is an atomic mineral that occurs naturally in the coastal sands of three districts: Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, and Kanyakumari. Hence, Statement 3 is not correct.
