{"id":29351,"date":"2023-02-01T08:16:56","date_gmt":"2023-02-01T08:16:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=29351"},"modified":"2023-02-01T08:16:56","modified_gmt":"2023-02-01T08:16:56","slug":"ionic-rare-earths-advancing-rare-earth-circular-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/ionic-rare-earths-advancing-rare-earth-circular-economy\/29351\/","title":{"rendered":"How Ionic Rare Earths is advancing the rare earth circular economy"},"content":{"rendered":"
Australian-listed company,\u00a0Ionic Rare Earths Limited\u00a0(ASX:IXR), is setting itself apart from the growing list of rare earth hopeful miners by looking to solve the complex global problems of demand outstripping sustainable supply chains, geopolitics, and recycling. The strategy is to help transition and power a low-carbon future globally. The company is completing the circular economy of magnet rare earths through mining, refining and recycling and is building momentum towards achieving the title of the Western world\u2019s first supplier of magnet and heavy rare earth elements. The forecast demand for these critical elements is already driving long-term appreciation \u2013 and Ionic Rare Earths will be able to feed this hungry market which is predicted to grow exponentially into the future.<\/p>\n
Four elements make up the magnet rare earths classification \u2013 Neodymium (Nd), Praseodymium (Pr), Dysprosium (Dy) and Terbium (Tb) \u2013 and it is these four that investors should pay attention to now as these will be the four elements that literally drive the electric vehicle (EV) and offshore wind industry over the decades to come.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0Makuutu Rare Earths Project<\/a>\u00a0is gaining momentum and is set to become a globally significant producer of both magnet and heavy rare earth oxides (REO), providing a viable, low-cost, large-scale, alternative supply chain outside of China. Makuutu is already touted as one of the largest Ionic Adsorption Clay (IAC) deposits in the world, with a JORC Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) of 532 million tonnes (Mt) at 640 parts per million (ppm) total rare earth oxides (TREO). Central to this is the highly classified Indicated Resource at Makuutu Central (RL 1693) of 259 Mt at 740 ppm TREO, which is supporting the current Mining Lease Application that is expected to be awarded in late Q1 2023.<\/p>\n The project is strategically important for western end users, with no current sources of heavy rare earths in production at present, and all supplies emanating from China, or Myanmar. This is unpalatable for some western governments, with several key military applications dependent upon the technologies derived from heavy rare earths \u2013 the fact that this material is also sourced from China further escalates anxiety about the supply chains.<\/p>\n The company is also heavily engaged with potential partners with the progression of the downstream refinery study expected to be finalised in Q1 2023, with the US as the preferred location for the facility to separate the mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) product from Makuutu into separated and refined rare earth oxides (REO).<\/p>\n Ionic Rare Earths presently owns 51% of the Makuutu Project and will shortly move to a 60% ownership. The company has also initiated discussions on existing partners with Ionic Rare Earths having a pre-emptive right to secure the remaining 40% of the project.<\/p>\n The next phase of commercialisation of the company\u2019s mining and recycling assets is now heavily focused on validating and scaling up with the construction of two Demonstration Plants \u2013 one in Uganda at the Makuutu Rare Earths Project, and the other at the company\u2019s 100% owned subsidiary, Ionic Technologies International Limited (IonicTech) which is developing a magnet rare earth recycling facility in Belfast, UK via a patented hydrometallurgical process.<\/p>\n Ionic Rare Earths is developing the large-scale Makuutu ionic adsorption clay (IAC) deposit in Uganda, which the company says has one of the highest value \u2018baskets\u2019 of all rare earth element (REE) projects in evaluation today.<\/p>\n <\/a>The Makuutu Project will be Uganda\u2019s flagship sustainable mine. The project is poised to be a low-cost, significant long-life supplier of high-value magnets and heavy rare earth oxides. Makuutu is an advanced-stage, IAC-hosted REE project highlighted by near-surface mineralisation and significant exploration upside. The clay-hosted geology at Makuutu is similar to major IAC rare earth projects in southern China, which are responsible for the majority (~98%) of the global supply of heavy rare earths<\/a>. The deposit is shallow, with less than three metres of cover over a clay and saprolite zone that can stretch from 5 metres thick to nearly 30 metres thick, which results in low-cost bulk mining methods with a low strip ratio.<\/p>\n The project is well-supported by tier-one existing infrastructure, which includes access to major highways, roads, hydroelectric power, water, and a professional workforce, and is located 120km east of Kampala in Uganda.<\/p>\n Processing is via a simple acidified salt desorption heap leaching, breaking the chemical ionic bond which washes the rare earths (in a chemical form) from the ore into a pregnant leach solution (PLS). The PLS is concentrated using membrane technology, from which the rare earths are precipitated as a mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) product \u2013 a product which attracts both a higher payability and achieves a high basket price due to the dominant high-value magnets and heavy rare earths which make up over 70% of the product basket.<\/p>\n The Makuutu Project is set to become Uganda\u2019s flagship sustainable mine, and through mining, support the country in achieving goals set in the Third National Development Plan (NDPIII). The company plans to use renewable energy, alternative sources of fuel, and apply sustainable mining practices to reduce their impact on the environment \u2013 positively contributing to Uganda\u2019s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for many decades into the future.<\/p>\n The awarding of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) Certificate in October 2022\u00a0 by the Ugandan Government’s environmental regular, NEMA (National Environmental Management Authority), has been a major milestone in developing the Makuutu Project. Work programmes continue in Australia and Uganda to de-risk the Makuutu Project, with the finalisation of the Mining Licence Application and award expected by the end of March 2023. Engagements continue with governments, government departments, and potential strategic partners interested in the unique appeal of the Makuutu basket of magnet and heavy rare earths to feed new emerging supply chains \u2013 and in doing so, providing secure, sustainable and traceable production.<\/a><\/p>\n In October 2022, two important ESG milestones were reached by the company and the project.<\/p>\n The first was accepted as a participant in the United Nations Global Compact. The United Nations Global Compact is the world\u2019s largest corporate sustainability initiative and Ionic Rare Earths is committed to aligning corporate strategy and operations with the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact. In a move to consolidate Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) transparency, and to act on the United Nations \u201cAgenda 2030\u201d, the company will now begin to report on the progress of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).<\/p>\n The Second was receiving a \u201cBB\u201d ESG score for Corporate and Makuutu Rare Earth Project activities from Digbee ESGTM<\/sup>, regarded as the mining sector\u2019s leading independent assessment platform for ESG disclosure and endorsed by leading global financiers. This initial submission paves a path for operational and reporting improvements to be addressed across all pillars of Environmental, Social and Governance.<\/p>\n Already the Makuutu Rare Earths Project has begun to transform local lives. A number of health, education, water purification, and community support programmes have taken place to date. These sustainable development programs continue to positively impact and support the communities which fall within the four districts (Bugweri, Bugiri, Iganga, and Mayuge) of the Makuutu Project. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these community programs supported community safety and improved employment opportunities.<\/p>\n These inclusive growth programs will continue to expand as the mine develops. Strong partnerships are being built to ensure that the social impact felt within the communities continues to drive change well into the future.<\/p>\nThe Makuutu Rare Earth project<\/h3>\n
ESG focus is a key path to successful business practices<\/h3>\n
Social license to operate<\/h3>\n