Goin' Prospectin'

[Elben]

Hans Daimler was many things. Back home in Elben, he was a respected geologist. To the those who engaged his services, he was a smartly dressed businessman who ran an efficient and highly successful outfit that performed various tasks in the industry, from on-the-ground assessments to negotiations with the locals. To the people who worked with him outside the office, he was an old time prospector, dressed for the outdoors in functional clothing, a sturdy pair of hiking boots, a brown leather jacket, and a fedora to top it off.

Today, as he rode from his lodgings to the offices of the director, he was dressed in a sober black suit and his trimmed blond hair was combed and parted. He looked out the window at Hebra as it passed him by from where he sat. He had read all about Rito, but he had always liked to get a feel for the place he went before going in. Rolling down his window, he breathed deep and the scent of peppers from some restaurant caught his attention. Yes, Hans smiled, negotiations should go well.

Arriving at his destination, he went in and was eventually ushered into the office of the foreign director, Kilton Vah. Hans went through the appropriate greetings and concluded by saying in English, "Your Excellency, it is a pleasure to be here in Hebra. I hope we can reach an agreement that will be mutually beneficial for Rito and my clients for the exploitation of your country's REEs."

(Rare Earth Elements) @Rito

 

[Rito]

It was a big day in the city of Hebra. Kilton Vah was nervous.

Kilton had recently begun his job as Director of Foreign Trade & Affairs - a big deal, considering, that a few weeks ago, the office didn't even exist. The Tutsiwa Council had urged Congress that the nation of Rito must open its doors to foreign trade, knowing that the future of the country depended upon good relations with other countries. Congress agreed, and appointed Kilton, one of the most respected community leaders, up to the task.

Today marked the first day in which Rito negotiated official trade agreements with Elben. Kilton, a man in his mid-sixties, had dressed in his best robes, in the traditional bright red, and had made sure that his beard made him look (hopefully) smart and (hopefully) gave off the impression that he knew what he was doing. Although he had much experience in external affairs with other neighboring countries, it was a new frontier for Kilton to strike up official trade and business agreements.

Naz Pelison, the newly appointed Elben Ambassador, burst into the room, almost tripping himself.

"Sir, he is here," said Naz breathlessly, his eyes shining with excitement. He was a younger man, around his mid thirties, who was something of an oddity; he had unkempt black hair and his blue robes had few coffee stains on it (where he undoubtedly spilled due to excitement). Naz was appointed Ambassador to Elben because he was the best man for the job. For years, he had been collecting Elben pocket knives and knew more about the Catholic Church than most men on the Tutisiwa Congress. Unlike Kilton, he was beaming with excitement.

"Send him in." Kilton stiffed up, hoping that it would give off an impressive look. Naz nodded excitedly and left.

Moments later, an undeniably Elben man walked in, with impeccable blonde hair and an immaculate foreigner's suit, and introduced himself as Hans. Although he knew little about suits, Kilton noted that it looked expensive, and commanded respect. Perhaps I should have bought a suit, Kilton mused, but no matter. I'm in my best robes, which will give me luck.

"Your Excellency, it is a pleasure to be here in Hebra. I hope we can reach an agreement that will be mutually beneficial for Rito and my clients for the exploitation of your country's REEs." Hans concluded. Despite the Elben accent, Kilton was relieved to see that he could understand Hans fine.

"We're excited that you're here, Han. As you may know, this is a big day in the history of Hebra." Kilton nodded and motioned Hans to sit down, as he pulled out some papers. "Although we have historically had unofficial trade agreements with neighboring countries like Reikoku, no foreign governments have yet made a step towards solidifying an official trade."

"As you can see, we have a large and untapped reserves of various REEs, we suspect this is due to the tectonic activity near the Gerudo mountains, which are to the east of the country. Here is a list of the most popular minerals that are used. Let me know which ones you are interested in." Kilton slid a piece of paper to the other side of the table.

|-
| Mineral
| Uses
| Quantity
|-
| Neodymium, erbium, thulium, and holmium
|Optical glass fibers, specifically for communication devices. Doped optical glass fibers are most often the gain medium in fiber lasers and fiber amplifiers that carry the light being transmitted in the fiber.
|95% left (201,333 tons discovered)
|-
| Europium
|Utilized as phosphors in cathode ray tubes, fluorescent lamps and X-ray intensifying screens. Modern-day weapons systems also rely on europium for military uses, such as high-powered lasers for targeting and acquisition.
|99% left (23,528 tons discovered)
|-
| Lanthanum
|Crucial for NiMH rechargeable batteries. NiMH rechargeable batteries offer higher power than many types of batteries. The continued focus on renewable energy has driven REE use in this sector, due to the inclusion of NiMH batteries in hybrid vehicles.
|89% left (42,310 tons discovered)
|-
| Promethium
|A naturally radioactive element and also the rarest of the rare earth metals, it is used for pacemakers and scientific research.
|?? left (8,510 tons discovered)
|-
| Yttrium, Ytterbium
|Yttrium is diverse metal used in superconductors, cancer treatment drugs, medicines, color TVs, and cameras. The Ytterbium metal is used in cancer treatments and earthquake-monitoring devices. It’s also used to improve stainless steel.
|70% left (12,199 tons discovered)
|-
| Praseodymium, terbium, neodymium
|These are necessary for high-performance guidance systems. Modern-day smart weapons rely on sophisticated motors and actuators to steer them toward their targets. Neodymium in particular is crucial for these applications.
|82% left (32,001 tons discovered)
|-

 

[Elben]

"We're excited that you're here, Han. As you may know, this is a big day in the history of Hebra." Kilton nodded and motioned Hans to sit down, as he pulled out some papers. "Although we have historically had unofficial trade agreements with neighboring countries like Reikoku, no foreign governments have yet made a step towards solidifying an official trade."

"As you can see, we have a large and untapped reserves of various REEs, we suspect this is due to the tectonic activity near the Gerudo mountains, which are to the east of the country. Here is a list of the most popular minerals that are used. Let me know which ones you are interested in." Kilton slid a piece of paper to the other side of the table.
----------

Hans took the seat offered and made himself comfortable. The director talked and the foreigner listened. Glancing at both his hosts, he looked over their robes with interest. Hans had never been a fan of more Germanic dress back home, but seeing these gentlemen in their finery of the East gave him a new appreciation for his homeland's own.

Kilton slid over a piece of paper and it was back to business as Hans picked it up and skimmed it. "As you may know, sir, Elben is at the cutting edge of the development of the Interweb. We have a keen interest in furthering interconnectivity. My clients, the government and the Elben Technology Consortium, are always seeking more supplies of your first entry here." He pointed at the neodymium, erbium, thulium, and holmium.

"But let's talk about your country's situation and how we might be able to help you on a grander scale." Hans sat forward a bit and looked at his host. "Your country has these REEs, but your mining industry is underdeveloped. My clients are interested in forming a long term partnership to invest in expanding mining and operations. In exchange, we would receive a percentage on all of these once they are extracted and refined. That'd be a lot of jobs for your people."

Daimler let that sink in as he set the paper back down on the desk.

 

[Rito]

"Understandable. Of course, fast interconnectivity is of utmost importance for the development of information sharing for the nation. What percentage of mining operations are you hoping to retain? Will you be bringing in workers to work and train our people? Many of our youth spend time in the fields and I'm sure you would have no shortage of willing men who want to learn how to extract rare earth minerals." Kilton nodded. "You are correct that our mining operations are underdeveloped. In fact, most of our economic sectors are based on agriculture and yak-farming."

Kilton sighed and sat back. The elders had always warned of the colonizers and so what Hans had proposed had almost sounded... too good to be true. But Hans was correct that Rito had underdeveloped mining industries. The country needed an industrial revolution more than anything. Although most of the citizens of Rito had cell phones and internet, computers and laptops were still something of a rarity, and help was very much needed to revolutionize the economy.

There was also one more thing that Rito wanted, Kilton was reminded of. The country had successfully defended itself from invaders in the past. It was simple enough a hundred years ago when there wasn't technology to scale mountains and to swim under the seas. But military technology had advanced frighteningly quickly in the past few years, and the elders were alarmed to hear of missiles, tanks, and airplanes. Therefore, it was of utmost importance to develop defense systems and secure strong allies.

"We are hoping to also secure allies for our safety, as you can understand. Our natural resources have been the target of several countries before, and so, with increased natural resource extraction comes more attention, and more people vying for them. The safety of our people is of utmost importance." Kilton was hoping to broach the subject in a nonchalant way.

"How will Elben react if your mining operations here were attacked by foreign countries? And would Elben be open to getting an ambassador to work out these security measures, in addition to securing trade agreements?"

 

[Elben]

"What percentage of mining operations are you hoping to retain? Will you be bringing in workers to work and train our people?"

"How will Elben react if your mining operations here were attacked by foreign countries? And would Elben be open to getting an ambassador to work out these security measures, in addition to securing trade agreements?"
----------

There was a lot to sort through there and Hans focused on the two basic questions, answering the second one first and then circling back.

"Elben would obviously be displeased if its citizens' property were to be attacked by a third party. It is far away, but it would do their utmost to exert economic pressure to obtain relief and would enlist its allies in the cause."

Hans nodded and then came back to the first question, "As for the investment question, the consortium would wish to obtain a majority share of the mine producing the most of the elements I pointed out earlier. We would bring in experts to train the existing workers and as operations grow, more workers would be hired and trained appropriately. Elben is land of agriculture as well and we know well it takes time and effort to properly bring one's society into the modern world while retaining all that is best of one's homeland.

"If Rito is approached by anyone else for mining rights or control of other mines, we would like to negotiate a right of first refusal for those."