The market for rare earth elements (REEs) is set for massive expansion, with optimistic but feasible forecasts pointing to a doubling in global demand by as soon as 2020. But as that process gathers pace, there is a looming threat that there will be winners and losers - and that the West is already finding itself on the wrong side of the line. The REEs comprise 17 elements that have long been in electronic products and a range of more traditional applications. This latest growth wave, though, is driven by their use in clean energy applications. These are set to require a huge increase in the extraction and refining of two in particular, neodymium and praseodymium (abbreviated to NdPr in the mining industry). NdPr is shipped in oxide form for use in making the lightweight neodymium-ironboron (NdFeB) permanent magnets inside high-efficiency motors and turbines. A third REE, dysprosium, is added to magnets for motors that operate at high temperatures. As you might have guessed, the most eyecatching of the emerging markets for such technology is electric vehicles (EVs), although wind power is seen as a significant secondary sector. However, the inevitable excitement around REEs as an enabler is tempered by concerns about the supply chain.