Home›Commodities›Mining›Study suggests China’s Bayan Obo rare earth reserves m…

Study suggests China’s Bayan Obo rare earth reserves may be larger

The research points to multiple carbonatite stages at Bayan Obo, including mineralization tied to a younger event.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Mining

China’s Bayan Obo rare earth deposit in Inner Mongolia may hold more resources than the currently reported reserve figure, according to research highlighted by SCMP Economy.

A leading Chinese geologist, Yang Li of Peking University, said scientists now believe the reported reserves may not capture the full geological potential of the region.

SCMP Economy reports the deposit is described as containing 100 million tonnes of rare earth reserves and has been the backbone of China’s rare earth industry for decades.

In the 2025 study cited by SCMP Economy, Bayan Obo is not linked to a single geological event, but to multiple stages of carbonatite activity, including carbonatite dated to 1,300 million years ago and a second phase around 430 million years ago that Yang said was key to mineralization.

More like this

Sources