IPOH (Aug 27): The federal government currently has no plans to manage non-radioactive rare earth element (NR-REE) resources, including through government-linked companies (GLCs).

Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said the government is still discussing the REE industry framework and planning how to manage REE resources, following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's vision to not only extract, but also process and sell these materials.

"Perak has experience as a tin producer and we want to do something similar in the REE industry, by extracting and processing the resources locally so that the value stays within the country," he told a press conference near here Tuesday.

He said there are no plans to set up a GLC to manage NR-REE at this time, even though the idea has been discussed in Parliament, adding that according to the Constitution, the management of minerals other than oil and gas falls under state government authority.

Nik Nazmi further assured that there are no concerns about GLCs managing NR-REE.

In July, Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad confirmed that the state government will keep NR-REE under state control and will not involve GLCs in its management.

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