St George Mining has linked up with a globally-leading European rare earths processing firm to conduct testing on the company’s hard-rock rare earths material at its blockbuster Araxá project, in the Brazilian State of Minas Gerais.
Management has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the industry-leading Spanish engineering firm, Tecnicas Reunidas S.A, to process samples from the high-grade Araxá resource to produce a mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) and potentially, to define a downstream processing strategy for material expected to be mined at the site eventually.
Tecnicas Reunidas has developed its proprietary RARETECH technology for the processing of rare earths and will test the suitability of its cutting-edge systems on the Araxá material.
Initially, the focus will be on refining the mineralisation to produce a mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) and rare earth oxide, along with separating and splitting the rare earth elements within the ore.
Additional work, depending on the results of the initial testwork, may include designing an optimised processing flowsheet based on using Tecnicas’ innovative RARETECH technology to process the ore. It could also involve developing a processing method unique to the Araxá deposits.
There may also be scope to incorporate a preliminary engineering study alongside capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operating expenditure (OPEX) costings for a proposed production plant at the project site.
St George Mining executive chairman John Prineas said: “The reputation of Tecnicas Reunidas in Europe is second to none regarding rare earths processing and we are very pleased to be able to access their expertise to further develop our downstream processing strategy for our Araxá rare earths.”
Prineas said the Araxá project holds the largest hard-rock rare earths deposit in South America and is bigger than the operational Mountain Pass mine in California, the leading rare earths mine in the US.
The company believes the tie-up with Tecnicas Reunidas provides the potential to open doors in Europe for the supply of its rare earths, in addition to its existing strategic alliances with REalloys in the US and MagBras in Brazil.
Tecnicas Reunidas has been recognised for its rare earths technical know-how after being selected to lead the PERMANET (PERmanent MAgnet NETwork for the European Transition) project, an initiative backed by the European Commission under its flagship Horizon Europe program.
Notably, Horizon Europe is designed to deliver solutions across five key areas, including climate and has the world’s largest research funding budget of €95.5 billion.
The PERMANET project aims to establish Europe’s first fully integrated value chain for permanent magnet production, spanning the extraction, processing and refining of the rare earth elements needed to manufacture them. Its funding comes from the European Union (EU) and involves 12 countries and 32 partners, both private and public enterprises.
The program is managed and implemented by the EC.
Since the MOU creates no obligation to deal exclusively with Tecnicas Reunidas, St George says it retains the ability to negotiate additional arrangements with other engineering firms, lock in strategic investors, or enter into other transactions for the Araxá project.
Araxá hosts a world-class mineral resource of 70.91 million tonnes grading 4.06 per cent total rare earth oxides, with the valuable inclusion of magnet rare earth oxides tallying up at 0.77 per cent of the total resource.
St George’s huge inventory comes with the added bonus of the highly sought-after mineral – niobium – which could pour another revenue stream into Araxá’s critical metals mix. With its niobium stash grading at a solid 0.62 per cent of the total resource, the project almost grows another leg of commercial upside.
Niobium is a critical metal, used as added muscle to high-strength low-alloy steels. Its high-temperature resistance also makes it ideal for superalloys used in rockets and jet engines.
If RARETECH delivers as hoped, St George could find itself fast-tracking Araxá from concept to credible development story. Tapping into real-world, high-tech processing know-how may prove the catalyst that nudges the project firmly towards commercial production.
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By Craig Nolan
