Page "Neodymium" Paragraph 40

Neodymium is never found in nature as the free element, but rather it occurs in ores such as monazite and bastnäsite that contain small amounts of all the rare earth metals.

The main mining areas are in China, the United States, Brazil, India, Sri Lanka, and Australia.

The reserves of neodymium are estimated at about eight million tonnes.

Although it belongs to the rare earth metals, neodymium is not rare at all.

Its abundance in the Earth crust is about 38 mg / kg, which is the second highest among rare-earth elements, following cerium.

The world's production of neodymium was about 7, 000 tonnes in 2004.

The bulk of current production is from China, whose government has recently imposed strategic materials controls on the element, raising some concerns in consuming countries.