Minerals explorer ABx Group (ASX:ABX) has received a research and development (R&D) tax offset totalling $503,855 for the rare earth element (REE) activities it conducted during 2022.
The company, which has a market capitalisation of $21.46 million, says these activities involved developing techniques for exploring, drilling, and processing ionic absorption clay (IAC) REE deposits.
Commenting on the tax offsets, ABx Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director Mark Cooksey says: “R&D is an essential component to our various businesses and is particularly important for our rare earths opportunity, given that our rare earths are of the ionic absorption clay type.
“R&D is an essential component to our various businesses and is particularly important for our rare earths opportunity”
We have made a number of critical advancements in how to drill these clays, how to most efficiently process them, and improved our understanding of the geological mechanism that led to the formation of mineralisation.
Ionic absorption clay rare earths provide a number of critical advantages over other types of rare earth deposits, including potentially improved processing economics at pH4, as well as a greater proportion of highly valuable heavy rare earths such as dysprosium and terbium.”
This R&D offset follows a similar offset recently awarded to ABx’s subsidiary ALCORE announced on 3 August 2023. The combined offsets total over $1 million.
ABx Group is an Australian company focused on rare earth elements and chemicals such as aluminium fluoride. As of 30 June 2023, the company had $5.89 million cash at hand, according to its latest quarterly report published on 31 July 2023.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: ABx Group Ltd
