Dynamics in the Global Market for Rare Earths

The long-term growth of numerous industries will depend on the ability to secure stable and diverse sources of rare earths. Recent years have seen unprecedented volatility in this sector, with the rare earths being increasingly considered as strategic and critical to a wide range of technologies. During the next few years, demand for some of the rare earths is expected to exceed supply. Chinese export-quota policies have had a severe impact on the market. Worldwide exploration efforts are now leading to the deployment of a rare earth supply chain based outside China.

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December 2025 --The Variscan Orogeny in Europe – Understanding Supercontinent Formation

The Variscan orogen formed between 380 and 300 million years ago through several accretionary and collisional cycles, culminating with the construction of the Pangea supercontinent. This process occurred via sequential opening and closure of oceanic basins, synchronous detachment of Gondwana derived continental ribbons, and their outboard amalgamation onto the Laurussia margin. The Variscan orogen is rather unique compared with other orogenic belts on Earth: its overthickened and dominantly magmatic crust in the central belt, surprisingly minor mantle involvement in the magmatic and geodynamic processes, coherent and pulsed magmatism along the collision suture, and its complex accretionary history. Because its final product, Pangea, is the youngest and best-understood supercontinent on Earth, the Variscan orogeny offers clues for understanding the mechanisms of supercontinent formation.