USA Rare Earths Launches Hydrometallurgical Facility in Colorado, Targets 2026 Oxide Production

[SMM Rare Earth Flash News] Australian mineral sands producer Iluka Resources recently announced that it has secured a A$1.65 billion (about $1.15 billion) non-recourse loan confirmed by Export Finance Australia (EFA) for the construction of a rare earth refinery in Eneabba, Western Australia. The refinery will be Australia's first fully integrated rare earth refinery. Iluka stated that the first drawdown of A$1.25 billion is expected to be fully utilized by the end of 2026, at which point construction of the refinery will be 75% complete. The project is currently over 50% complete, with commissioning anticipated to begin in mid-2027. Meanwhile, Iluka has signed a binding multi-year offtake agreement with a globally renowned automaker. The four-year agreement, effective from 2028, covers the supply of magnetic rare earth oxides including neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium, accounting for approximately 10% (about 1,200 mt) of Iluka's planned production.

[SMM Rare Earth Flash] US critical minerals producer Energy Fuels (NYSE American: UUUU) recently announced that it has signed a definitive agreement with private equity firm Ara Partners to acquire Vacuumschmelze (VAC), a century-old German magnetic material enterprise, for approximately $1.9 billion. The transaction is expected to close in early 2027. VAC’s existing Sumter plant in South Carolina, US, has a permanent magnet capacity of 2,000 mt per year, expandable to 12,000 mt per year. The acquisition combines VAC’s downstream magnetic material manufacturing with Energy Fuels’ upstream rare earth mining and separation assets, as well as the metal capacity from the planned acquisition of Australian Strategic Materials (ASM), creating the first rare earth platform in the West that spans the entire supply chain from mining to finished magnets. VAC will retain its German headquarters and brand.