Victory Metals (ASX:VTM) is positioned to become a potential producer of critical heavy rare earth elements (HREE), which are now subject to new export restrictions from China.
Earlier this month, China’s Ministry of Commerce and General Administration of Customs announced the imposition of export licensing requirements on several key heavy rare earths. These include dysprosium, terbium and yttrium with all elements vital to global defence, energy and high-tech manufacturing industries, as well as gadolinium, which is used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as reported by Mining.com.au.
CEO Brendan Clark says China’s restrictions on exports of key heavy rare earths is a reminder that the West cannot rely on a single nation for critical minerals that underpin defence, energy and technology.
“This development represents a direct threat to both national security and the global energy transition,” Clark says.
“Victory recognised this risk early and has strategically built the North Stanmore Project around its unique geochemical strengths particularly its high ratios of heavy rare earth elements.
“The metallurgical performance and heavy rare earth recoveries we’ve achieved are exceptional and position Victory at the forefront of becoming a reliable, large-scale, non-Chinese source of critical materials.”
Victory, which has a market capitalisation of $40 million, is focused on developing Australia’s “largest and most advanced clay-hosted HREE project at North Stanmore”.
The North Stanmore Project features high metallurgical extraction rates including 94% terbium, 87% dysprosium, 71% lutetium, and 72% yttrium.
As Mining.com.au previously reported, Victory Metals completed a Scoping Study for the North Stanmore Project which forecasted a 31-year mine life and an estimated net present value of $1.212 billion with an internal rate of return of 52%.
According to the American Geosciences Institute, rare earths are necessary components of more than 200 products across a wide range of applications. These applications include high-tech consumer products and defence applications.
The global rare earth market is valued at US$2 billion ($3.33 billion) and is forecast to grow to US$12 billion by 2030.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Victory Metals
