June 07, 2023 -- InvestorsHub Newswire --
Via NetworkNewsWire Editorial Coverage: The transition
from fossil fuels to electrification has created a huge increase in
demand for rare earth oxides and demand is expected to get much
larger. Rare earth oxides are irreplaceable elements integral to
permanent magnets, critical components in electric vehicles and
sustainable power generation equipment, especially windmills. About
90% of all permanent magnets are currently produced in China, which
is now considering banning or restricting exports of technology to
process and refine rare-earth elements. Beijing is also pondering
provisions prohibiting or limiting exports of alloy technology used
in making high performance magnets made from rare earths minerals.
As the transition to a cleaner world grows, China is restricting
exports of permanent magnets and related tech in favor of feeding
domestic demand, thus strangling the global transition. Governments
in North America and across the world have voiced extreme urgency
in reshaping supply chains to reduce dependence upon China and
achieve clean energy mandates. Only a few companies can be called
leaders in a nascent yet potentially explosive
market. Ucore Rare Metals Inc. (TSX.V: UCU) (OTCQX:
UURAF) (Profile) stands out with its
transformative technology, RapidSX(TM), for separating and
purifying critical metals. Also in the hunt for market share in
this burgeoning new market is MP Materials
Corp. (NYSE: MP), Neo
Performance Materials Inc. (TSX: NEO), Energy Fuels
Inc. (NYSE American:
UUUU) (TSX:
EFR) and Li-Cycle Holdings
Corp. (NYSE: LICY), all of which have
established footholds and expanding operations in a concerted
effort to shift away from reliance upon China and achieve energy
independence.
- China has pledged to reach
carbon neutrality before 2060 and is considering bans on exports of
rare earth technology critical to the global supply chain
today.
- The U.S. DoD is actively
exploring new technology related to REE separation technology,
including awarding a $4 million contract to Ucore to explore its
innovations.
- Successful completion of the
initial U.S. DoD contract could result in additional follow-on
funding to support the company’s facility in Louisiana.
- Ucore is commissioning a
demonstration facility in Ontario to be used for DoD contract,
while designing a commercial-scale facility in Louisiana.
Click here to view the custom infographic of
the Ucore Rare Metals
Inc. editorial.
China Threatens Bans on Critical Exports
In September 2020, President Xi
Jinping announced that the People’s Republic of China will
“aim to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon
neutrality before 2060,” perhaps one of the most impactful pledges
of any of the more than 90 countries that are aiming for net-zero
emissions around mid-century. Against this backdrop, China’s
domestic market is experiencing a remarkable boom in the rare earth
oxide (also often called rare earth elements, or REE) sector. The
surge in domestic demand is expected to outpace the country’s REE
production, leading to a potential supply crunch that will affect
the globe under the current supply chain structure.
The fear of China disrupting the global supply chain has
stimulated innovation and encouraged the exploration of sustainable
alternatives to capture share in a booming rare earth minerals
market forecast to grow 12.3% annually to $9.6
billion by 2026. The United States, as part of its
commitment to the Paris climate accord, promises to reach net-zero
emissions by 2050, which means cutting the country’s greenhouse gas
emissions in half by 2030. To meet this ambitious goal, the
International Energy Agency estimates electric vehicle sales need
to reach around 60% of total vehicle sales by 2030 to reach
net-zero CO2 in 2050, while the NRDC says buildings “must rapidly
move away from fossil gas.” Little wonder there is newfound urgency
to change the curve of an existential crisis facing humanity and a
new emphasis on technologies that utilize rare earth oxides.
For more than 15 years, Ucore Rare Metals Inc.
(TSX.V: UCU) (OTCQX: UURAF) has been an important
part of the rare earth market, developing technology to disrupt the
status quo of rare earth elements. The company is now in a position
to help solve the impending supply crisis by assisting with the
creation of an independent supply chain of rare earth oxides for
North American manufacturers. Ucore has differentiated itself with
a unique approach that focuses on the most profitable sector of the
supply chain, processing material and avoids the risks of large
CAPEX requirements.
Ucore is fast approaching a launch point as it commissions a
commercial demonstration plant in Canada that uses RapidSX(TM) (SX
is short for “solvent extraction”), a proprietary metals separation
technology wholly owned by Ucore that is not merely an alternative
to Chinese technology but is also potentially better than anything
in use today. Going forward, Ucore is also designing a full-size
plant in the United States to supply rare earths to North American
customers. Ucore is collaborating with suppliers of rare earth
mixed concentrates from outside China, as well as end users of
these oxides including OEM Automotive manufacturers.
And now, Ucore has caught the attention of what could be a
milestone “company maker” partner: the U.S. government.
$4 Million Contract to Explore RapidSX
This month, Ucore announced that it has been awarded a $4 million
contract by the U.S. Department of Defense (“DoD”), specifically,
the US Army Contracting Command – Orlando. The DoD represents an
enormous and prestigious contracting marketplace. Securing a DoD
contract not only brings in a substantial funding stream, but it
also conveys a significant amount of credibility and visibility.
Further, the contract notes that, upon successful completion of the
initial project, a follow-on production award may be awarded to
Ucore in order to offer a streamlined method for transitioning to
follow-on production.
The objective of the new project is to help the DoD understand
Ucore’s new innovative separation processes that increase the
ability to create domestic rare earth processing plants and the
capability to source a sustainable domestic processing facility for
these important materials. In short, the U.S. government knows it
must maneuver away from China and establish a robust domestic
supply chain and is actively exploring companies and cutting-edge
technology that can support making it happen in short order.
For its part, Ucore will utilize its RapidSX Commercial
Demonstration Facility in Kingston, Ontario, to deliver a number of
technical requirements under the contract. “We believe that Ucore
has one of the West’s most compelling rare-earth-supply chain
business models,” said Ucore chair and CEO Pat Ryan. “This
U.S.-DoD project will allow us to demonstrate the RapidSX
technology platform for rare earth element separation and will
include original equipment manufacturers’ qualification trials in
coordination with our commercial development activities at the
company’s planned Louisiana SMC. The rare earth element processing
opportunity afforded Ucore through this sward is pivotal as the
company continues to seek out and collaborate with like-minded
upstream and downstream partners as part of a Western
rare-earth-element supply chain solution.”
RapidSX: A Superior Technology
The DoD wants to see first-hand the capabilities of RapidSX, as
a potential paradigm shift away from conventional metal separation
technology such as that used in China. Ucore will be showcasing
several benefits of its technology. These include demonstrating
rare earth separation processing at a rate more efficient than
conventional solvent extraction and the separation of both light
and heavy rare earths (an industry innovation).
To understand the value of this takes some clarity on light and
heavy REEs.
REEs represent a group of 17 chemically similar elements with
unique properties essential for modern technologies. Four of these
elements are critical inputs to rare earth permanent magnets. These
four elements must be separated from the rest in order for their
unique properties to be captured. However, effectively separating
these elements is a daunting task for current technological
approaches. The primary challenge arises from the similar chemical
and physical properties shared among REEs, making them hard to
isolate. The minimal differences in atomic radii and ionic charge
among the REEs complicate the separation process.
Benefits Abound with RapidSX
Being able to efficiently separate heavy and light REEs is a
differentiator for RapidSX on its own. But that is not all that
Ucore’s proprietary tech offers. There is also an environmental
impact from current extraction technology, because it generates
large volumes of toxic waste. RapidSX overcomes an additional layer
of complexity by making the process far more environmentally
friendly.
RapidSX also has a much smaller carbon footprint than other
metal separation technologies. Its smaller footprint uses less
power, and all the solvents are recycled. These features
effectively westernize a process that will enable an
environmentally safe and very economically robust business
plan.
Still More to Show Off
Ucore intends to prove to the DoD that its construction design
is a continuous process working facility capable of processing many
metric tons of feedstock. The demonstration facility in Kingston
will speak volumes to the opportunity and potential of RapidSX and
give a hint as to what is upcoming when Ucore builds its planned
full-size Strategic Metals Complex in Alexandria, Louisiana. The
full-scale production plant is scheduled to initially process 2,000
tonnes of total rare earth oxides by the end of 2024, increasing to
5,000 tonnes in 2026. Management believes that the cost of the
company’s facilities will be supported by local and state
government incentives as well as prepurchase (off-take) agreements
from major manufacturers currently under development.
All of this aligns with the final primary purpose of the $4
million DoD contract. Along with all the other benefits, Ucore will
provide the DoD with a techno-economic analysis of RapidSX versus
conventional solvent extraction.
Structured for Growth
Ucore is structured for rapid growth in a sector that will
provide products critical to the successful electrification of the
North American economy. The sector has plenty of room for multiple
players and different avenues for investor exposure.
MP Materials Corp. (NYSE: MP) produces specialty
materials that are vital inputs for electrification and other
advanced technologies. The
company is currently expanding its manufacturing
operations downstream to provide a full supply chain solution from
materials to magnetics. In February, MP struck a deal with Sumitomo
Corp. to diversify and strengthen rare earth supplies in Japan.
Under the agreement, Sumitomo will serve as the exclusive
distributor of NdPr (neodymium-praseodymium) oxide produced by MP
to Japanese customers.
Neo Performance Materials Inc. (TSX: NEO) manufactures the
building blocks of many modern technologies that enhance efficiency
and sustainability. Neo’s advanced industrial materials — magnetic
powders and magnets, specialty chemicals, metals and alloys — are
critical to the performance of many everyday products and emerging
technologies. In April, Neo acquired a controlling interest in SG
Technologies Group Limited, one of Europe’s leading advanced,
specialty manufacturers of rare-earth-based and other
high-performance magnets for industrial and commercial markets.
Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE American:
UUUU) (TSX:
EFR) is a Colorado-based critical
minerals company that mines uranium and produces natural
uranium concentrates that are sold to major nuclear utilities for
the production of carbon-free nuclear energy. Energy Fuels recently
began production of advanced rare earth element materials,
including mixed REE carbonate, and plans to produce commercial
quantities of separated REE oxides in the future. Energy Fuels
recently completed the acquisition of 17 mineral concessions in
Brazil that has the potential to supply 3,000 to 10,000 metric tons
of natural monazite concentrate per year for decades to Energy
Fuels’ White Mesa Mill in Utah for processing into high-purity REE
oxides and other materials.
Li-Cycle Holdings Corp. (NYSE:
LICY), an industry leader in lithium-ion battery
resource recovery and the leading lithium-ion battery recycler in
North America, is taking a different approach to meet rare earth
oxide demand. The
company is leveraging its innovative Spoke & Hub
Technologies(TM) to provide a customer-centric, end-of-life
solution for lithium-ion batteries, while creating a secondary
supply of battery-grade materials. In April, Li-Cycle and VinES
Energy Solutions teamed-up via a long-term recycling relationship.
Starting in 2024, Li-Cycle will become VinES’ strategic and
preferred recycling partner for VinES’ Vietnamese-sourced battery
materials.
It is past time to look beyond China and develop strategies
specific to breaking its monopoly on REE processing. The green
energy surge is fueling an exponential rise in domestic demand, a
fact that may be unnoticed by the mainstream investing public, but
could make rare earths a rare opportunity.
For more information Ucore Rare Metals, please
visit Ucore Rare
Metals.
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