Drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping': the lawless rush for rare earth minerals in Venezuela

"For months, Brig Gen Rafael Olaya Quintero, commander of the Orinoco naval force, has been chasing tin and coltan traffickers across the waterways at Colombia's border with Venezuela. His mission has become more urgent since the global shift towards clean energy has generated an unprecedented rush for rare earth elements and critical minerals. These materials are vital components in electric vehicle batteries, wind turbines, fighter jets and guided missiles, with demand also driven by increased defence budgets in the EU, US and China,"

"The difficulty for Quintero and his team, stationed in Puerto Carreno along the Orinoco River, is that unknown quantities of some of the world's most sought-after minerals are being funnelled through fraudulent schemes that mask their origin before reaching international buyers. We're talking about groups financing themselves through illicit economies: mining, drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping, says Quintero. There is no ideology at this point."

"The rare earth elements and critical minerals are being extracted in areas under the control of guerrilla groups, involving systematic human rights abuses and accelerating environmental destruction in one of Earth's most vital ecosystems. Quintero's view is shared by Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general. Earlier this year, he warned an imminent threat grows ever greater, noting that most of the critical minerals needed for the global energy transition are found in or near Indigenous people's territories."

Brig Gen Rafael Olaya Quintero has pursued tin and coltan traffickers along the Orinoco River at Colombia's border with Venezuela. Global demand for rare earths and critical minerals, driven by clean-energy technologies and rising defence budgets, has produced an unprecedented rush. Unknown quantities of minerals are funneled through fraudulent schemes that mask origin before reaching international buyers. Guerrilla groups control extraction in parts of the Amazon Basin, financing themselves through illicit economies including mining, drugs, extortion and kidnapping. Systematic human rights abuses and severe environmental destruction are occurring in the Guiana Shield and Indigenous territories where rich deposits lie.

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