Brazilian Rare Earths (ASX:BRE) has commissioned its stage one pilot plant at Camaçari and secured R$6.4 million ($1.73 million) in co-funding for stage two hydrometallurgical development.
The stage one plant has produced its first rare earth mineral concentrate using physical processing, advancing the company into bulk-scale metallurgical test work for feasibility studies.
BRE has also renewed its development partnership with SENAI CIMATEC to advance the stage two pilot plant. SENAI CIMATEC and partner organisation EMBRAPII have committed to contribute R$6.4 million, covering 59% of stage two’s expected capital and operating costs.
Equipment is expected to arrive onsite in Q4 2026, with commissioning planned for Q2 2027.
The company says stage two will add hydrometallurgical extraction and separation to establish integrated ore-to-oxide pilot capability.
Chief executive Bernardo da Veiga says BRE is now advancing its bulk metallurgical testwork program to underpin its feasibility studies.
“The stage two hydrometallurgical pilot plant program will extend our systematic metallurgical evaluation through hydrometallurgical extraction and separation to produce neodymium-praseodymium oxide, heavy rare earth concentrate, and uranium yellowcake,” da Veiga says.
BRE says production will be done in partnership with French separation specialist Carester, an offtake partner currently under a binding 10-year sales agreement covering up to 150 tonnes per annum of dysprosium and terbium.
The company’s co-product program will test leach solutions and residues to optimise recovery of uranium, scandium, niobium, titanium, and tantalum. It also aims to inform engineering design for the planned Camaçari refinery.
An August 2026 Scoping Study places Monte Alto and Camaçari in the first quartile of Benchmark Mineral Intelligence‘s forecast global rare earth cost curve at US$21 ($29.10) per kilogram neodymium-praseodymium equivalent.
The study includes forecast uranium recovery, capital, and operating costs, but assigns zero revenue to uranium, and excludes production or revenue from a life-of-mine average feed inventory of 43 tonnes of scandium oxide.
BRE says the pilot plant results will support assessment of a potential fast-track Monte Alto mineral concentrate development pathway.
Brazilian Rare Earths is an explorer focused on discovering and developing critical minerals and rare earths in northeastern Brazil.
Write to Paula Fabe at Mining.com.au
Images: Brazilian Rare Earths
