A new front has been added to the world power struggle over oil and natural gas. Raw materials for critical technologies ranging from fighter jets to missile systems, from electric cars to artificial intelligence infrastructure have become one of the most important trump cards in the economic competition between the USA and China. Türkiye is one of the countries attracting more and more attention in this struggle with its boron, thorium and rare earth element resources in different regions, especially Eskişehir. The latest development came from China. Beijing-based scientific research has reignited discussions about Türkiye’s strategic mining potential.
ESKİŞEHİR REPORT FROM CHINA
According to the news published by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post newspaper Chinese scientists have comprehensively investigated the geological development of the Kızılcaören rare earth element deposit in Eskişehir. The research, led by Professor Yang Xiaoyong from the University of Science and Technology of China and Hebei GEO University, focused on revealing how rare elements accumulate in rocks associated with carbonatites. However, the most striking aspect of the research was its cautious results regarding Türkiye’s commercial production potential. Yang stated that the mineralization they examined was limited compared to large-scale rare earth deposits, and expressed the opinion that it would not be easy for the region to create a strong alternative to global producers in the near future.
694 MILLION TONS OF ACCOUNT
At the center of the discussion is the 694 million tons of resources announced by the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources. This quantity, detected in the field between Beylikova and Sivrihisar districts of Eskişehir, does not consist only of rare earth elements.. According to the Ministry’s data, the source is; It consists of complex ore containing bastnasite, barite, fluorite and thorium. It is stated that there are approximately 12.5 million tons of rare earth oxides in the ore.
CHINA’S Trump card is TECHNOLOGY
Beijing’s global superiority does not come only from its underground resources. China is the country with the strongest industrial infrastructure in the world in separating rare earth elements, refining them and converting them into high-performance magnets. China’s share in the production of special magnets, especially needed by the defense and energy sectors, is approximately 90 percent.
USA LOOKS AT Türkiye
For Washington, rare earths are no longer just a matter of industrial policy but of national security. Advanced radars, precision guidance systems, aircraft engines and electronic equipment used by the American defense industry depend on critical elements. China’s export restrictions revealed how big a risk this dependence could pose. According to Reuters’ analysis dated September 24, 2026, the USA will remain dependent on China for rare earth elements in the 2030s, despite rapidly increasing its domestic production and refining capacity. Washington’s current capacity is limited, especially in processing heavy rare earth elements.
WE ARE THE WORLD LEADER IN BOARD
In the US-China competition, Türkiye’s strategic cards are not limited to rare earth elements. Türkiye, which has 73 percent of the world’s boron reserves, is also the leader of the global market in this field. Eskişehir-Kırka, Kütahya-Emet, Balıkesir-Bigadiç and Bursa-Kestelek are among the main boron production centers of the country. Although boron is not included in the group of rare earth elements, it has strategic value in defense, nuclear technology, special glass, ceramics, metallurgy and advanced material production. According to the targets announced by Eti Maden General Manager Yalçın Aydin in the Turkish Grand National Assembly on October 14, Türkiye is expected to sell 2 million 700 thousand tons of boron products in 2026 and earn an income of 1 billion 560 million dollars. If the target is achieved, a new sales record will be reached in the boron industry.
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES
However, the most important transformation for Türkiye is to turn to high value-added products as well as ore and traditional boron products. Boron carbide and ferrobor investments in Bandırma aim to develop a new industrial chain, from armor materials used in the defense industry to special steel production. Efforts to recover lithium from boron production processes in Eskişehir Kırka also strengthen Türkiye’s goal of producing different strategic products from the same source.
“WE SHOULD CONVERT IT INTO TECHNOLOGY”
Geostrategist and Researcher Dr. Ahmet Uslu makes the following evaluations regarding the global power struggle over precious elements and Türkiye’s strategic position: “There are two big tests ahead of Türkiye. The first is to reveal the real economic size of the underground resources. The second is to not only extract these resources but also to transform them into high-tech products. The amount of ore underground and the amount of elements that can be converted into economic value are not the same. This critical distinction is at the heart of the competition between the USA and China. The real struggle is not to own the mine, but to dominate the technology that can process it. Türkiye’s underground wealth offers a great strategic opportunity.”
