Japan, US team up to challenge China’s rare earth dominance

August 13, 2026 (MLN): Japan and the United States are moving toward deeper cooperation on developing the vast rare earth deposits around Minamitorishima, a remote Japanese island in the Pacific, as both countries seek to reduce their dependence on China for critical minerals.

Located more than 1,000 miles southeast of Tokyo, Minamitorishima is a small, flat island surrounded by seabed deposits containing heavy rare earth elements including yttrium, gadolinium and dysprosium. These minerals are essential for semiconductors, electric vehicle motors, advanced electronics and military equipment.

Japan’s Cabinet Office recently reported promising results from samples collected earlier this year, with further drilling planned. Tokyo is targeting the preparation of a commercialization plan by 2028, according to Bloomberg.

The project gained renewed momentum following a March meeting between US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, after which the two countries agreed to cooperate on deep-sea mining.

Japanese officials are considering bringing in US companies with expertise in offshore drilling and oil and gas operations. Houston-based Deep Reach Technology has already held preliminary discussions with Japanese officials regarding potential involvement in extracting the deposits.

The scale of the resource has attracted strategic attention. Research conducted by Japanese scientists has estimated that seabed mud south of Minamitorishima contains more than 16 million tons of rare earth minerals, with some deposits potentially capable of supplying global demand for hundreds of years.

China's dominance of the global rare earth supply chain has added urgency to the project. Beijing controls a major share of global rare earth production and has increasingly used export restrictions on the minerals amid escalating trade and geopolitical tensions with Washington and Tokyo.

China has also increased marine research activity near Minamitorishima. Japanese officials have raised concerns over repeated visits by Chinese survey vessels and a 2025 entry by a Chinese aircraft carrier into Japan's exclusive economic zone around the island.

Tokyo has subsequently strengthened security measures around Minamitorishima, including deploying an anti-ship missile battery for training and considering additional radar and defense infrastructure.

Despite its strategic potential, commercial extraction presents major technical and financial challenges. The deposits are located at depths far beyond those reached by most offshore oil drilling projects, while water pressure at the site is estimated at roughly 600 times that at sea level.

Developing the project could require billions of dollars and more than a decade of investment, with one private-sector estimate placing production costs at around three times those of land-based extraction in China.

For Japan, the project represents more than a mining opportunity. Tokyo views domestic access to heavy rare earths as a way to strengthen economic security, diversify critical-mineral supplies and deepen its strategic partnership with Washington.

Japan’s long-term growth strategy envisages around $5.7bn in public and private investment in deep-sea resource development by 2040, including projects linked to Minamitorishima.

The United States is also seeking alternative sources of rare earths as tensions with China expose vulnerabilities in its critical-mineral supply chain. Cooperation with Japan could provide both countries with a potential mine-to-magnet supply chain outside China's control.

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