Zhong's case is now in the hands of the prosecutor's office, following an investigation launched in January by the National Supervision Commission, China's main anti-corruption body, the judiciary said in a statement.
Zhong, who worked for several years in departments related to geology and minerals, was also director and secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the CGS between 2014 and 2022.
The official, who was expelled from the PCC last June following an investigation that accused him of alleged "serious violations of discipline and laws", also violated, according to the commission, national confidentiality regulations by "deliberately disclosing state secrets ".
If the charges are confirmed, the intentional disclosure of state secrets could lead to severe sanctions for Zhong, 61, from the eastern province of Anhui, who started working in 1983 and joined the CCP in 1985.
CGS is a Chinese government agency responsible for investigating and evaluating the Asian country's mineral resources, such as valuable rare earths, materials of which China controls more than 80% of global production.
These minerals are essential for the manufacture of semiconductors, electric vehicles and military equipment, which is why decisions made on rare earths were elevated to the category of "national security" in a recent law for the sector, approved in June,
A revision of Chinese law for the "protection of national secrets" came into force in May, at a time when the country launched several investigations against foreign consultancy companies operating in the country or detained citizens for espionage.
The new measures have raised concerns in some quarters regarding the possible ambiguity of the definition of "state secret", raising fears that it could be used to restrict freedom of expression and access to information.
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