London, UK, Rainbow Rare Earths (LSE:RBW) has released an updated interim economic study for its flagship Phalaborwa Rare Earths Project in South Africa, revealing a base case NPV10 of USD $611 million. The study highlights significant technical progress and downstream potential, positioning the company as a leading player in the emerging circular rare earth economy.

Optimization Unlocks Greater Value

Speaking on The Watchlist with Ricki Lee, CEO George Bennett shared that recent technical advances have strengthened the project’s economics. “We’ve been able to produce a very high-quality mixed rare earth product that is extremely low in impurities,” Bennett explained. “This not only enhances the feed for our downstream separation circuit but also reduces overall costs.”

The company is currently conducting optimization work on the figures released in December 2024. Bennett said the upcoming results are expected to “greatly improve both the NPV and operating costs,” further boosting project returns and investor confidence.

A Low-Cost, Low-Impact Model

Bennett emphasized that Phalaborwa is not a traditional mining operation, but a chemical processing project that extracts rare earth elements from phosphogypsum waste.
“These gypsum stacks are already chemically cracked,” he noted. “That means 60% of our process has effectively occurred at zero cost. We avoid the usual mining, crushing, and cracking expenses, giving us one of the lowest-cost flow sheets in the industry.”

This innovative approach allows Rainbow to minimize environmental impact while maximizing resource recovery, an increasingly important advantage as global industries transition to sustainable supply chains.

Targeting the Growing Demand for Critical Minerals

Rainbow Rare Earths’ output will include neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) and SEG+, which contains key heavy rare earths such as dysprosium and terbium. These elements are essential for electric vehicles (EVs), wind turbines, and defence technologies, as well as emerging markets in robotics and advanced air mobility.

Bennett said global demand is rapidly expanding beyond EVs:

“The industry is forecasting that robotics and air mobility will soon outpace even EV demand. This will put tremendous strain on supply chains seeking independent sources of these materials outside China.”

Rainbow has already attracted attention from multiple original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and offtake partners interested in securing long-term supplies. Production from Phalaborwa is targeted for 2028, which Bennett described as “near-term” for a project of this scale.

Global Expansion: Brazil, Canada, and Europe

Beyond South Africa, Rainbow is advancing international expansion. The company has signed a memorandum of understanding with Mosaic, the global fertilizer producer listed on the NYSE, to recover rare earths from phosphogypsum waste at Mosaic’s operations in Brazil.

An initial economic assessment (IEA) for this Kuberaba project is already underway, with results expected before the end of this year. Bennett described it as “higher grade and longer life than Phalaborwa,” and expects the study to deliver “a very positive outcome.”

Additionally, Rainbow is in active discussions for two new opportunities, one in Canada and another in Europe, aimed at replicating its low-cost, sustainable recovery model.

Outlook

With multiple projects advancing and optimization work underway, Rainbow Rare Earths is positioning itself at the forefront of sustainable rare earth supply outside China. The company’s model, extracting high-value materials from industrial waste, offers a blueprint for a circular, low-carbon approach to critical mineral production.

For more information, visit rainbowrareearths.com.

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