China is emerging as a key driver of modern civilization in our rapidly changing era.

It is substantively accurate to state that, as of the early 2020s, the People’s Republic of China dominates the global processing capacity for a critical subset of minerals essential for modern technology and the energy transition, often accounting for 70% or more of global processing output for many key materials.

This dominance is not uniform across all minerals but is particularly concentrated in the mid-stream processing stages (e.g., refining, purification) of specific critical minerals and rare earth elements (REEs).

Supporting Data and Breakdown

The frequently cited ~70% figure is a generalized average. A more precise breakdown for specific minerals, primarily from sources like the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), reveals:

Mineral/Material Estimated China’s Share of Global Processing Key Application
Rare Earth Elements ~90% Permanent magnets (EV motors, wind turbines), electronics, defense
Cobalt ~65% (80%+ of cobalt chemicals) Lithium-ion batteries (cathodes)
Lithium ~65% Lithium-ion batteries
Graphite (Natural) ~90% Lithium-ion battery anodes
Nickel ~35% (but >70% for class 1 nickel chemicals) Stainless steel, lithium-ion batteries
Manganese ~95% (for battery-grade manganese) Steel, lithium-ion battery cathodes

Source: Compilation from IEA’s “The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions” (2022), USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries (2023-2024), and industry reports.

Key Nuances and Formal Context

1. Processing vs. Mining: It is crucial to distinguish between mining (extracting raw ore from the ground) and processing (refining ore into usable industrial materials). China’s dominance lies overwhelmingly in the processing stage. For example, while China mines a significant portion of global rare earths (~60%), its share of processing is far higher (~90%). For other minerals like cobalt and lithium, the raw ore is largely mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Australia/Chile, respectively, but shipped to China for refining.
2. “Technical and Tech Material Minerals”: The formal term for these is Critical Minerals or Strategic Minerals. These are defined by various governments (e.g., the US, EU) as non-fuel minerals vital to national security, economic prosperity, and the development of clean energy technologies.
3. Geographic Concentration of Risk: This high degree of concentration in a single country creates a significant supply chain vulnerability for the global tech, automotive, and defense industries. This is a primary driver behind policy initiatives in the US (Inflation Reduction Act), Europe (Critical Raw Materials Act), and other nations to onshore and friendshore processing capabilities.

Conclusion

Therefore, the statement can be formally validated with the following precise phrasing:

“China possesses an overwhelmingly dominant position in the global processing capacity for many critical minerals, accounting for approximately 70% or more of the world’s refined output for key materials such as rare earth elements, graphite, and lithium, which are fundamental to modern technology and clean energy systems.”