WRA announces first female president

Carol Jackson, chairman and CEO of HarbisonWalker International, was elected as the incoming president of the World Refractory Association. Jackson will begin her two-year term in January 2020, succeeding Stefan Borgas, CEO RHI Magnesita, who has led the organization since January 2018.

China’s Ganzhou launches rare earths exchange

The city of Ganzhou in China’s southeastern province of Jiangxi has launched an exchange for spot transactions in rare earths and minor metals. The bourse is the second rare earth exchange to open in China.

Pentagon to stockpile rare earth magnets for missiles, fighter jets

The U.S. military plans to stockpile rare earth magnets used in Javelin missiles and F-35 fighter jets, a step that critics say does little to help create a domestic industry to build specialized magnets now made almost exclusively in Asia.

NPCA, PCI delineate plant certification requirements by product category

The National Precast Concrete Association and Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute issued Joint Concrete Products List (JCPL 11-19) to alleviate confusion regarding precast and prestressed concrete product certification programs and enable specifiers to easily determine whether products require NPCA or PCI certification.

US-Israel fund to invest $6M in joint clean energy projects

Seven clean energy projects received $6.4 million in funding from a joint US-Israel research and development fund, the Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Energy program. Since its launch in 2009, the BIRD Energy program has funded 49 projects with a total joint government investment of $38 million.

Rare earth oxide prices stabilized on week

Prices of rare-earth oxides in China mostly stabilized last week with increased medium-to-heavy rare earth at a slower pace on the back of subdued year-end demand. While producers firmed up offers in anticipation of tight supplies on Myanmar’s rare-earth ore export suspension, downstream metal and magnetic material producers were on sidelines.

Author

Lisa McDonald