Lynas Rare Earths to Challenge China’s Market Dominance with New Separation Process
Lynas Rare Earths, an Australian-listed miner, plans to separate two types of heavy rare earths at its Malaysian plant, aiming to weaken China's dominance in the market for these essential materials used in electric cars and electronics.
The company has developed a new process to produce separated dysprosium and terbium for the first time at its Malaysian facility.
Until now, Lynas has sold these rare earths to Chinese separators as part of a mixture that includes other heavy rare earth oxides. It also produces light rare earths, such as neodymium and perylene, used in magnets.
Amanda Lacaze, Lynas' CEO, stated that this initiative marks "the first step in expanding into the heavy rare earth family of products."
Lynas is expanding capacity to meet growing demand, especially for rare earths produced outside China. The company is also progressing with a planned processing facility in Texas that will separate both heavy and light rare earths.
The U.S. and other nations are seeking to reduce dependence on China for rare earths. Western miners face challenges from low prices, rising costs, and tighter regulations. The Australian government has loaned Iluka Resources funds to build the country’s first light and heavy rare-earth refinery. Lynas' Texas project, supported by the U.S. government, aims to supply the Department of Defense and commercial customers.
Lynas is in the detailed engineering phase for the new plant in Malaysia, which is expected to separate up to 1,500 tons of mixed heavy rare earth compounds annually.
