Vietnam inaugurated its first center for rare earth research and technology transfer in capital Hanoi on Saturday, based on an agreement signed by the Vietnamese and Japanese prime ministers in 2011.

Tran Viet Thanh, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Science and Technology addressed the inauguration ceremony that although Vietnam has a huge potential of rare earth, rare earth mines have not been put into operation so far.

With the active cooperation of scientists of Vietnam and Japan, the center will contribute to the study of rare earth ore processing in Vietnam and the application of rare earth in high- tech industries, said Thanh.

Ichiro Takahara, Director General of the Japan's Agency for Natural Resources and Energy said that the center is applied with high technology and is expected to become one of the world-leading rare earth research centers in the future.

The center is the first facility in Vietnam extracting and separating rare earth from exploited ore before exporting to Japan.

According to the Vietnamese Department of Geology and Minerals, the country has one of the world's largest rare earth reserves, mainly found in the northwest region.