Naki Shiraki and Naomi Tajitsu:
Japan’s Honda Motor Co has co-developed the world’s first hybrid car motor without using heavy rare earth metals, which it says will reduce its dependence on the expensive materials mainly supplied by China.
Hybrid vehicles combining a gasoline engine and electric motor have become increasingly popular in many developed countries, but sourcing a steady supply of rare earth elements such as dysprosium and terbium has been a challenge.
In 2010 China imposed a temporary ban on exports of rare earth minerals to Japan as the two nations engaged in territorial disputes.