Made in Germany: The Business Magazine

Christine Schweikert, commodities expertDW-TV:And joining us in the studio now is Christine Schweikert, a commodities' expert How do we know if our commodities are extracted in a "humane" way? Christine Schweikert: Well you don't know it at the moment, you can only guess. But they're trying to change that now by giving a certificate to a raw material which shows you where it comes from exactly and through which hands it's gone to make sure it's properly mined. DW-TV: When you say 'they' - who is behind it? Christine Schweikert: America on the one hand and the OECD countries on the other. DW-TV: Our modern way of life is pretty dependent on these rare resources every year some 130-thousand tons of these rare earth elements are used for various items required by our modern civilisation: 40 percent for the production of batteries. 25 percent for crude oil refineries. 20 percent for lenses and spectacles. And some 10 percent for mobile phones and LCD screens. So we really NEED tantalum, and that puts countries like China, Russia, Africa and Brazil into a pretty strong position, right?... Christine Schweikert: That's true, and it is already a problem, as we have seen with China, which has restricted its exports of rare earth. And I think that's going to become an increasing problem - we're going to see more protectionism on the raw materials front. Not neccessarily because these countries are 'evil', but because they're using it for themselves. DW-TV: If we've seen this problem before, why didn't any European country invest in tantalum or other earth elements? Christine Schweikert: Well, some are, certainly - not in Europe, because it's very difficult to get mining through here - but there are companies financing mining projects in other countries. In return, getting long-term contracts suppling them with the raw material they want. DW-TV: So are there any other countries with whom we could do business? Other than China or Russia, so we are less dependent on them... Christine Schweikert: Yes, but it takes a long time to build up a supply, and a lot of money, and I don't know whether the European position is the best one in that case. DW-TV: Not at the moment, but if you say that it takes time, why didn't we start earlier investing in it? Christine Schweikert: That's a very good question. I don't know. A number of institutions pointed out that China would be using its rare earth on its own, for itself, it's its biggest customer anyway - But I don't know why that's happened. Until last year, people weren't alerted to it because the prices were fairly low. Now they're high, they're shooting up and suddenly it gets more important. DW-TV: Now our situation becomes clearer. We're also thinking about recycling the material - could that be an alternative? Christine Schweikert: To some extent, yes. But at the moment, recycling quotas are very low. Zero percent for some metals, 4 percent for tantalum. It's difficult and it's going to take some time, but higher prices will be an incentive. Interview: Monika Jones