In the recent quarter, Molycorp Inc. initiated the start-up of its new mill, flotation separator, and paste tailings facility at its Mountain Pass rare-earths property in eastern California. The company also announced a 36% expansion of its proven and probable rare-earth reserves at Mountain Pass, confirming 18.4 million short tons of rare-earth ore at...
Ucore Rare Metals Inc. has received an underground mine-design study of the Bokan heavy-rare-earth project on Prince of Wales Island in Alaska, it reported this morning. The design was completed by Stantec, of Tempe, Ariz. The objective of the study was to recommend the most advantageous mining methodology from a range of alternatives and estimate...
Molycorp Inc. said today that a $390 million strategic investment from Santiago-based Molibdenos y Metales S.A. (Molymet), the world’s largest processor of the strategic metals molybdenum and rhenium, will finance its growth and will help the rare-earth processor continue to pursue its vertical supply chain integration business model. The Chilean firm gets 12.5 million...
A report it contracted from SENES Consultants Ltd. concludes that its proposed large-scale monazite rare-earth extraction facility can be operated safely and effectively, while complying with all major national and international mining and environmental safety standards, Medallion Resources Ltd. said this morning. That would quickly open up vast resources of rare earths from what...
China’s renewed warnings last week of further rare-earth export reductions and stronger in-country production controls increases the urgency for the U.S. to ramp up its own rare earth production, Mark A. Smith, Molycorp Inc.’s president and CEO, told a U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee this morning. Ironically, this testimony came a day after Molycorp...
We constantly hear about future high-tech demand for rare earths. But what exactly are they, and do they go beyond a few parts per million in cell phone screens? An announcement yesterday by Molycorp Inc., the nation’s only producer of rare earths and the single producer outside China that currently seems to be a...
Scandium isn’t technically a rare-earth element, charting the periodic table at element 21. But it’s frequently classified as one, and it’s often found along with them. It’s also used in some high-tech applications and it’s not available from domestic source. The U.S. Geological Survey says most of it seems to come from China, Russia and...
There’s lots of talk about rare earths these days. With China holding a near monopoly and Molycorp Minerals LLC being virtually the only Western alternative, everyone is talking about more demand and more production. Now one domestic firm has gotten a bit beyond talk to the pilot-plant stage. Lakewood, Colo.-based Rare Element Resources Ltd....
The United States needs to create a strategic metals reserve to protect its manufacturing capabilities and defense posture in case of an embargo — especially by China — says Michael Silver, president and chairman of the board of American Elements, a global manufacturer of engineered and advanced materials, including rare earth metals and chemicals. Silver said...
Quantum’s Dickie wants U.S. to counter China’s rare-earth strategy
Peter Dickie is calling for the United States to accelerate efforts to develop and stockpile strategic metals and rare earth elements (REE) in the wake of a new Pentagon report to Congress that the U.S. is critically dependent on China for 17 essential materials, and in particular, rare earth elements. The Quantum Rare Earth...
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