Japan deep-sea hunt finds rare earths as it seeks to cut reliance on China

Tokyo proclaims Pacific Ocean mission world’s first attempt to tap rare earths at such a depth.

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Japan has announced the discovery of rare earth elements at record sea depths.

The government said on Monday that a deep-sea test mission in the Pacific Ocean had retrieved sediment containing rare earths from depths of 6,000 metres (about 20,000 feet). Tokyo has stepped up efforts to mine deep-sea deposits in a bid to reduce its dependence on China for the valuable minerals.