Due to this almost-complete dependence on foreign sources, Molycorp is now looking to reopen its Mountain Pass mine in California and there is growing pressure on Congress to authorize the much-needed stockpiling of strategic minerals.

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The Mountain Pass mine, which had been bought in 1977 by Unocal, the oil company, began running into all kinds of regulatory problems concerning waste disposal, just as it was losing market share to cheaper Chinese competitors.

FORBES: The Politics of Rare Earth

From the 1960s until the 1980s, the Mountain Pass mine in California made the US the world leader in rare earth production, but it was later closed, largely due to competition with the elements imported from China.

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Over half of this expanded global demand was met by a single mine, Mountain Pass, in the deserts of southeast California.

FORBES: The Politics of Rare Earth

Resource Capital has not realized a penny from its investment in Molycorp, which aims to produce rare earth minerals (used in things like electric cars, wind turbines and iPods) at a previously shuttered mine in Mountain Pass, Calif.

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