ABx Group Limited (ASX: ABX), an Australian company focused on delivering materials for a cleaner future, has announced highly favourable feedback from Rare Earth Technologies Inc. (RETi) regarding its mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) product from the Deep Leads Rare Earths Project in northern Tasmania. RETi, a US-based company specialising in concentrating, separating, and purifying rare earth elements, confirmed that the ABx MREC is of high quality and suitable for their proprietary separation process. The positive assessment marks a significant step forward for ABx as it seeks to establish itself as a supplier in Western rare earth supply chains.
RETi’s evaluation involved a thorough assessment of a sample of maiden MREC from the Deep Leads project. Their testing confirmed the material’s high purity and compatibility with RETi’s proprietary process. According to RETi, the ABx MREC dissolved fully and yielded excellent results during cerium depletion and chromatographic separation, enabling efficient production of high-purity rare earth streams. RETi believes this makes it an ideal feedstock for their technology.
Dr Mark Cooksey, Managing Director and CEO of ABx Group, expressed his delight at the positive feedback, stating that it matches the company’s expectations. He emphasised that the Deep Leads deposit, being an ionic adsorption clay rare earth resource, is conducive to low-cost extraction and high MREC product quality. Dr. Dejene Kifle, Chief Technology Officer at Rare Earth Technologies Inc., stated his company was impressed with the quality of the MREC sample from ABx Group.
ABx and RETi will now advance discussions about a potential supply agreement. This will likely involve the evaluation of larger quantities of ABx MREC at RETi’s facilities. ABx aims to commence commercial production of MREC as soon as possible, and these results demonstrate the attractive qualities of the ABx product and the high level of interest this is generating in customers.
