China export restrictions double EU Ga and Ge prices.

Chinese export controls exports of germanium and gallium have led to an almost 2x increase in the their prices in Europe over the past year, reports the FT.

China produces 98% of the world’s supply of gallium and 60% of germanium, according to the US Geological Survey but, according to the Critical Raw Materials Alliance (CRMA), China produces 80% of the world’s gallium and 60% of germanium.

Other producers of germanium are Canada, Finland, Russia, and the US. Other producers of gallium are Japan, Korea, Russia and Ukraine.

The restrictions are likely to promote more re-use of the materials, a move to alternatives and more operations to mine them.

Some years back when China put restrictions on rare earth exports, alternative sources were found and China’s share of the world rare earth market dropped from 98% to 63%.

Inside China, the gallium price has risen 52% since June and now stands at $2,280 per kg.