China’s Export Curbs Result in Hafnium Prices Skyrocketing

China’s Export Curbs Result in Hafnium Prices Skyrocketing

Exporters have to deal with stringent government licensing procedures to ship the material abroad

The cost of the chemical element, hafnium, has reached a near-record high in Europe, due to supply constraints, resulting from China's export controls and booming demand by artificial intelligence (AI)-led growth in semiconductors and gas turbines.

According to the information agency Argus, the price for the metal used in aerospace, nuclear, and computing applications ranged between $6,300 and $7,000 per kg, in Rotterdam, Netherlands. This was a near record high of $7,100 in 2023.

Market experts said that U.S. hafnium prices were trading even higher (above $7,000 per kg), due to tighter availability.

A byproduct of zirconium refining, hafnium typically occurs at a ratio of 1 part hafnium to every 50 parts zirconium, making its separation complex and costly.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) listed China, Germany, and the Netherlands as the top exporters of unwrought hafnium in 2024.

Meanwhile, under the revised dual-use regulations, in 2024, China tightened export controls on hafnium. Analysts said that this meant that exporters have to now deal with more stringent government licensing procedures to ship the material abroad.

Referring to China's tightening grip on hafnium exports, a metal trader remarked, "The latest wave of geopolitical tensions has increased the pressure. Very few parties can have their licenses granted or get material exported. Companies without a track record of handling dual-use items or prior export licenses are suddenly not being granted them at all.”

Customs data revealed that in 2025, China's unwrought hafnium exports plunged from 5,001 kg in January to 499 kg in September, a 90 percent decline over nine months.

Cristina Belda, hafnium pricing specialist at Argus, said the demand was rising across multiple sectors for hafnium metal and hafnium dioxide, particularly for use in semiconductors and memory technologies.

She added, "The clamour for hafnium is also being fuelled by demand for gas turbines, particularly for powering AI data centres. The demand for nuclear power is also expected to increase hafnium usage.”

The lustrous, silvery-gray transition metal, hafnium, is used in gas turbines for heat-resistant superalloys that help in powering AI data centres and in memory chips, where hafnium oxide enables fast and efficient data storage. The product is also valued for its anti-corrosive properties and used to make control rods for nuclear reactors.