Non-ferrous
Non-ferrous
Base Metals
Rare Earth
Scrap Metals
Minor Metals
Precious Metals
New Energy
DashboardDatabaseProReportsEventsCar Insight
Language: 
Rare Earth Salts Separation Process Could Be Key for Producers Outside China
May 12, 2015 11:50Source:SMM
Rare Earth Salts announced plans to commercialize its separations processing business last Thursday.
Sunday May 10, 2015, 7:55pm PDT
By Teresa Matich+ - Exclusive to Rare Earth Investing News
Rare Earth Salts announced plans to commercialize its separations processing business last Thursday. The privately held company claims that its low-cost process could help producers compete with Chinese rare earths pricing.
Competing with Chinese rare earths production costs is certainly a tall order for companies outside of the country. It’s a challenge that many analysts have pegged as impossible, suggesting that end users will eventually choose to pay a premium for a secure supply of rare earths.
Still, Rare Earth Salts believes that its process is environmentally friendly and will cost below $4 per kilogram. Indeed, company CEO Allen Kruse has said he thinks the technology is “the missing piece to the industry being successful in the Western World once again.”
“It will allow current rare earth concentrate producers and prospective producers to directly compete with, and be profitable at, Chinese domestic pricing,” Kruse said in Thursday’s release.
The company claims to have defined a path to near-term production, and has commenced testing the flows and scalability of its proprietary separations technology. Those tests will facilitate the engineering and construction of a commercial production facility in Southeastern Nebraska, with the plant slated to process 10 tons of rare earths concentrate per month.
For Jon Hykawy of Stormcrow Capital, the Rare Earth Salts process is something worth looking at. While he told Resource Investing News it might be a slight stretch to say that the technology will allow every possible producer outside of China to be profitable at domestic Chinese pricing, Hykawy still said good things about the process.
“[T]he Rare Earth Salts process seems to work, and it is very likely much less expensive than conventional separation using solvent extraction,” he said. “For that reason, it is something that the industry, both inside and outside China, as well as interested investors, should be taking a close look at, and supporting.”
Certainly, Rare Earth Salts is already seeing support for its process. Back in October, the company signed a joint development agreement with one of the 10 largest mining companies in the world for the phased development of its plant. Kruse said via email that the company is in talks with several juniors from South America, Europe, North America and Australia.
“We hope to announce something official in the next 90 days or so around this,” he stated. “We are also in talks with consumer product recyclers that produce a concentrate to process for them as well.”
Kruse wasn’t able to divulge too much about how the process actually works, but he did state that it doesn’t produce a hazardous waste stream as all material used in the process is recovered, recycled or removed. The CEO added that equipment for the process is readily available and has been industrially proven across multiple sectors, meaning it will incur lower capital costs and easier expansion. It’s faster than traditional solvent extraction, and has so far resulted in purities of more than 99.995 percent.
To top it off, the technology is efficient for different types of rare earths concentrates. “The process is not chemically dependent on a set type of concentrate makeup,” explained Kruse, “[s]o we could have varying concentrates at any time come in, and it wouldn’t affect our process efficiency.”
In terms of the cost of the process, Kruse pointed out that if Rare Earth Salts were to partner with a company or enter a toll agreement, the cost would be slightly higher than $4 per kilogram. However, he noted that even if the company hypothetically doubled its costs, it would still provide over a 50-percent reduction in concentrate for rare earths concentrate producers compared to prices being quoted in China or France.
“It may mean the difference in profitability for dozens of projects,” he said. “We want to help the industry grow — including the resurgence of a Western supply chain.”
Securities Disclosure: I, Teresa Matich, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Rare Earth Salts
rare earth
China rare earth
rare earth price
For queries, please contact William Gu at williamgu@smm.cn
For more information on how to access our research reports, please email service.en@smm.cn
Related news
Exclusive: China's Metals Output in November
China’s copper cathode output stood at 825,900 mt in November, up 4.6% month on month and 0.5% year on year
Dec 10, 2021 18:25
Prices of rare earth stable, likely to stay rangebound
Prices of rare earths overcame downward momentum to hold stable in the week of March 19, SMM learned.
Mar 22, 2018 12:05
Rare Earth Price Drops from Highs, Giving Relief to Magnets Enterprises, SMM Reports
Rare earth prices dropped from highs on August 21.
Aug 22, 2017 11:16
SMM Events & Webinars
All- Nov24
2024 SMM Middle East Secondary Metal Field Trip
Nov 24 - Dec 01,2024UAE
- Apr09
NET ZERO MEA - Solar & Energy Storage
Apr 09 - 10,2025MARRIOTT HOTEL AL JADDAF, DUBAI, UAE
- Apr09
2025 SMM (20th) Lead & Zinc Conference and Industry Expo
Apr 09 - 11,2025To promote the sustainable development of lead and zinc industry to build a high-end, professional, pragmatic exchange pNanjing · Jiangsu ·China
Shanghai Metals Market
Privacy PolicyCompliance CentreSMM Credit ServiceContact UsAbout UsTerms & ConditionsSitemapHoliday Pricing Schedule
Notice: By accessing this site you agree that you will not copy or reproduce any part of its contents (including, but not limited to, single prices, graphs or news content) in any form or for any purpose whatsoever without the prior written consent of the publisher.
Drop us a line
service.en@smm.cn
How can we help you?
+86 021 5155-0306
Live chat via WhatsApp
Copyright © 2024 SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.
