Afghanistan and Kazakhstan may become the new world centers of production of rare earth metals

Almaty. March 18. Silkroadnews - Kazakhstan and Afghanistan could become the new world centers of production of rare earth metals, transmits the Afghan News Agency (AfTAG).
The government of Kazakhstan has recently approved a national plan for the development of rare metals in the next four years", - says the publication.
It is noted that significant reserves of rare earth metals also has Afghanistan.
"Afghanistan is located on the rich deposits of minerals. The bowels of Afghanistan may contain 60 million tons of copper, 2.2 billion tonnes of iron ore and 1.4 million tonnes of rare-earth elements such as lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium and deposits of aluminum, gold, silver, zinc, mercury and lithium", - says the publication.
As explained, praseodymium is a metallic silver used in the manufacture of certain types of glass and improvig the properties of some alloys.
According to estimates of the Afghan government, mineral deposits in Afghanistan are estimated at $3 trillion.