(Bloomberg) -- Rio Tinto Group is looking at ways to produce gallium in Canada after China moved to ban US-bound exports of the rare metal used to make semiconductors, smart phones and electric vehicles.
The company said Friday it’s assessing the potential for extracting and processing the mineral in Quebec, and plans to build a demonstration plant that can produce up to 3.5 metric tons of gallium per year. The product would come from bauxite processed at its alumina refinery in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, about 240 miles (385 kilometers) north of Quebec City, Rio Tinto said.
Quebec’s government has pledged C$7 million ($4.9 million) for the demonstration plant.
Gallium is used in key sectors including integrated circuits, which are used in technology like smart phones, electric cars and laptops. The metal is one of several that China banned from being shipped to the US last week as part of an escalating trade dispute.
Gallium prices assessed by Fastmarkets jumped 17% to $595 per kilogram on Friday, the highest since 2011.
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