On October 30, 2013, Stans Energy Corp., a Toronto-based firm focusing on heavy rare earth metals, and its subsidiaries filed a claim for arbitration under the Convention for the Protection of Investor’s Rights to which Kyrgyzstan is a signatory.
In 2010, rare earth and specialty metals market froth had speculators throwing money at a sector they didn't understand, and opportunistic resource company managers stepped up to take their money.
At the moment about 90% of the world’s rare earths —used in a variety of industries including green technology, defence systems and consumer electronics— come from China.
