TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A former CIA analyst says China wants to mine chemicals trapped in moon rocks to leapfrog into a new energy paradigm and leave the U.S. in the dust, with Chinese scientists having indicated strong interest in such mining operations.

Helium-3 on the moon “holds virtually limitless amounts of energy” if it can be mined and processed for use back down on Earth, according to ex-CIA space analyst Tim Chrisman in a recent Jersualem Post interview.

Some scientists say two space shuttles loaded to the brim with Helium-3 could power the U.S. for one year if energy consumption stays constant, according to an Asia Times report.

Yet Chinese scientists are thinking millennia ahead — Ouyang Ziyuan (欧阳自远), chief scientist at China’s Lunar Exploration Program, recently said the moon’s Helium-3 deposits could “solve humanity’s energy demand for around 10,000 years at least.”

“It opens up possibilities for dramatic changes,” Chrisman said, adding that China’s military-civil fusion strategy places it in a far better position in the race for Helium-3 than the U.S.

Chinese institutions are examining rocks sampled by the team involved in the Chang’e 5 mission to the Moon last year. Researchers are looking into how the material could be used for fusion power, per Asia Times.

March saw an agreement made between China's National Space Administration and Russian space agency Roscosmos to jointly build a research station on the Moon itself.