[bluGill]

This is a changeable situation. Expertise can be obtained. We have plenty of experts in Engineering, physics and chemistry. Everything about mining and processing comes down to those. Experts in the field know exactly what is important to know and and won't try something that seems good but doesn't work out. However there is no reason a few years of investment can't create experts of our own from the basic principals we already have.

Note that we have experts in mining and refining scattered around the country. While the specifics of rare earths are different from iron or gold, many details are close enough for round one, from there is is just improving the processes.