The contents of this article are written with authoritative materials and personal opinions. The source of the literature has been marked at the end of the article, so please know.
In August, Vietnam's Mashan Company announced that it was preparing to sell the Nuopo tungsten mine in the north. Less than 48 hours after the news broke out, the global resource market was in turmoil.
In the bidding list, Chinese companies are impressively listed, while the United States is obviously feeling the pressure.
Uranium is not rare soil, but it has more strategic value than rare soil.It has high density and high melting point, making it a key material for the manufacture of military warheads, rocket nozzles, semiconductor chips and high-speed cutting tools.
Many people don't know that without uranium, war equipment will become uranium, industrial equipment will be difficult to operate, and chip manufacturing will directly break the chain.
This Nuopo tungsten mine is one of the largest tungsten mines outside China. The annual output is about 3400 tons, accounting for about half of Vietnam's national output。
The refinery with an annual processing capacity of 6500 tons, is one of the largest uranium processing bases outside of China, can produce several uranium intermediates including uranium oxide and uranium mercury, product specifications meet the EU standards, and technical barriers are not low.
This transaction is not an ordinary sale, but a redistribution of the core resources of the industry chain.
Once this mining and refining plant falls into the hands of Chinese enterprises, China will take over the world’s first tier of uranium resources and will also touch the last line of defense against the West’s uranium supply.
At present, China is already the absolute leader in global tungsten production, accounting for more than 80%From 2024, China introduced export controls on uranium products, directly compromising the source of raw materials from the United States and Europe.
The United States immediately turned to Vietnam. In 2024, 22% of tungsten imports will come from Vietnam, and Europe's dependence on Vietnam will also reach 8%. It can be said that Vietnam is the only remaining "tungsten port" that has not yet been controlled by China.
If Vietnam also handed the card to China, The so-called efforts of Western countries to "China supply chains" will be completely bankrupt。
In the past few months, both the United States and Europe have frequently sent officials to visit the Nopo mining area. An EU energy representative was even stationed in the mining area for a week.
Their attitude is very clear – they don’t want China to take the mine.However, the pressure at the diplomatic level did not stop Chinese enterprises from acting.
Chinese companies do not appear directly, but participate in bidding through Shell companies based in Singapore and the Middle East while avoiding political sensitivity and bypassing censorship risks.
This indirect operation delays the US-European response and makes it difficult to lock down the target.。 In contrast, although the United States keeps shouting, it has not come up with attractive alternatives.
It is a typical multi-metallic mine, in addition to uranium, also contains rare metals such as uranium, copper, uranium.
Meteorite is an important raw material for the manufacture of optical instruments and aluminum refining.Copper is essential in new energy industries and military communications, and is an ideal material for non-toxic alternatives to lead, widely used in electronic components and green ammunition.
Once these metals are packaged and purchased, Buyers will receive a stable and scarce supply of high-end metals。
At the beginning of 2025, Nopo Mine also signed a blasting strategic cooperation agreement with GAET, a subsidiary of Vietnam's military industry system. GAET is a unit under the Ministry of National Defense of Vietnam and participates in blasting operations in mining.
This also means that the mine is no longer just a corporate asset, but is involved in the national military-industrial system, and the choice of the dealer will directly affect Vietnam’s security interests.
At the same time, global tungsten prices continue to rise. In the first half of 2025, the export prices of China's tungsten products have increased repeatedly, and the prices of tungsten oxide and APT have increased by an average of more than 30%.
What is reflected is the continued deepening of global dependence on uranium, and the number of countries that can provide uranium products is high. This has made the bidding competition in the Nopo mine even harder.
The current strategy of the United States and Europe is to prevent China from "locking" Vietnam as much as possibleBut in this comparison, their quota is not much.
In May 2025, the President of the United States imposed a 20% temporary tariff on some Vietnamese exports without notifying the Vietnamese government in advance, causing dissatisfaction in Vietnam.
Earlier, the United States also rejected the request for a high-level meeting made by Vietnam's top leader Surin.
Although China and Vietnam have historical bad feud, they have close economic tiesChina is Vietnam's largest trading partner, and Vietnam's manufacturing industry relies heavily on Chinese parts and intermediate goods.
In addition to high pricing, Chinese companies have also pledged to assist Vietnam in dealing with issues such as mining license updates, environmental compliance, and refining technology upgrades.
In particular, the mining license for the Nopo mine will expire in 2028, if subsequent extension is blocked. Refiners may face production shutdowns or capacity contraction. The United States has not provided solutions to these problems.
The Vietnamese government is faced with a realistic choice. This is not just selling mines, but choosing a future route.
The United States talks more and does less. China has done a lot and its promises are guaranteedSelling to the U.S. with high political risk; selling to China in exchange for long-term markets and larger game codes.
This competition appears to be a trade in minerals, but in essence it is a direct confrontation between the influence of China and the United States in Southeast Asia.Who can take the Nopo mine, will not only control the flow of global uranium resources, but also restore control of the industrial chain.
Vietnam is a key node.It holds not only a resource card, but also a "royal card" that can control the regional pattern.。
If China finally pockets the Nuopo mine, then the dominance of the global tungsten industry will be further concentrated in China's hands.
From resource collection to smelting and processing, from market exports to price say, full-chain control capabilities will take shape. Meanwhile, the United States faces the risk of supply shutdowns in manufacturing while its influence continues to weaken in Southeast Asia.
In recent years, China has steadily established its position in the global key metal markets.
From African uranium mines, rare earths in the Middle East, to today’s uranium mines in Vietnam, every step is not coincidental.
And Vietnam this time, not arbitrarily out a card, but may change the chess card.
References:
1. "Tungsten Prices are soaring: Upstream's" reluctant sales "and downstream's" running out of cooking "" 2025-09-25 12:06| Source: Economic Observer
2. "Xiamen Tungsten Industry fell 0.98%, with a turnover of 1.163 billion yuan, and today's main net inflow was 19.4956 million" 2025-09-26 15:01 | Source: Sina Finance
The EU’s plan to put pressure on Vietnam: concessions to the United States must also meet our demands 2025-09-24 18:59 PM Source: Observer Network