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China Mineral Export Restrictions Could Restrict Future Tellurium Supply
China produces about 60% of the world’s tellurium, essential for U.S. production of cadmium-tellurium solar cells. Vancouver, BC, Canada – TheNewswire - July 12
About this update from First Tellurium Corp
[{"type":"text","content":"China produces about 60% of the world’s tellurium, essential for U.S. production of cadmium-tellurium solar cells. Vancouver, BC, Canada – TheNewswire - July 12, 2023 – First Tellurium Corp. (CSE:FTEL), (OTC:FSTTF) (the “Company” or “First Tellurium”), reports that ongoing trade tensions between China and the U.S. create implications for both tellurium and the production of cadmium-tellurium solar cells. China announced last week that it will restrict exports of the critical metals gallium and germanium, both essential for the production of semiconductors. China produces around 80% of the world’s gallium and approximately 60% of the world’s germanium. China also produces about 60% of the world’s tellurium, most of which goes into cadmium-tellurium solar cells. Beijing has warned that it may ban the export of technology used to make solar panels, an industry which China dominates by controlling at least 75% of its global supply chain. That has potentially dire repercussions for the West’s drive for solar energy deployment. As the trade war heats up, the U.S. is looking to secure safe, domestic sources of tellurium and many other critical metals to pre-empt potential shortages. “This is precisely why the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) launched its Cadmium Telluride Accelerator Consortium (CTAC) a year ago,” said First Tellurium President and CEO Tyrone Docherty. “They know the U.S. is vulnerable and has to establish safe and reliable sources of tellurium.” The CTAC is a $20-million initiative designed to make cadmium tellurium (CdTe) solar cells less expensive and more efficient while developing new markets for solar cell products. CdTe solar cells, first developed in the United States, represent the second-most common photovoltaic technology in the world after silicon. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, CdTe is one of the best performing thin-film technologies in large-scale commercial production. The technology can be produced more cheaply than silicon solar panels and has been shown to have a 22.1% efficiency in converting sunlight into electricity However, without strengthened domestic manufacturing capacity, the US will continue to rely on solar technology imports, exposing the nation to supply chain vulnerabilities while simultaneously losing out on job opportunities. Metals analyst Chen Lin noted in a r...