Lynas Rare Earth and the US Department of Defense signed a follow on contract for the construction of a heavy rare earth facility in Texas, USA.

Lynas Rare Earth (Lynas) and the US Department of Defense (DoD) signed a follow-on contract, which will see the DoD increase its funding for the proposed heavy rare earth separation facility in Texas, USA.  The facility, located near Seadrift, Texas is expected to be the first commercial-scale heavy rare earth (HREE) separation facility constructed in the USA, with the intention of reducing reliance on imports of heavy rare earth products from China.  The DoD will provide US$258M toward the construction and commissioning of the Seadrift facility, increasing from US$120M stated in the previously reported contract signed in June 2022.  The contract is sponsored by the U.S. Government’s Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment (IBAS) Program to support the development of a U.S. rare earth supply chain    

The Seadrift facility will process a mixed rare earth carbonate product produced from Lynas’ Kalgoorlie cracking and Leaching facility, which is undergoing commission in H2 2023 with first production expected by the end of the year.  The Seadrift HREE facility is scheduled for first production in 2026. 

There is scope to accept third-party material for processing at the Seadrift facility, though Lynas has not reported any agreements with other existing or potential suppliers of mixed rare earth carbonate as of August 2023.  The new HREE plant will sit alongside a  light rare earth (LREE) separation facility at the Seadrift site with a combined target capacity of 5ktpy.