Can ABx Sustain High Rare Earth Yields Amid Market and Production Challenges?

Scaling Up Rare Earth Extraction

ABx Group Limited (ASX – ABX) has announced encouraging results from larger-scale slurry leach tests on a 100 kg bulk sample from its Deep Leads ionic adsorption clay rare earth project in northern Tasmania. Conducted by ANSTO, these tests achieved heavy rare earth extraction rates consistent with previous smaller-scale trials, notably 60-66% for dysprosium and 55-62% for terbium, two of the most critical and supply-constrained rare earth elements globally.

The significance lies in the replication of high extraction efficiencies under benign conditions, ambient temperature and pressure with a mildly acidic pH around 4.5. This suggests that commercial-scale production could be both cost-effective and environmentally sustainable, a notable advantage over more energy-intensive or chemically aggressive processes common in the industry.

Implications for Commercial Production and Market Position

The tests also demonstrated very low levels of impurities such as aluminium and iron in the leach solutions, which bodes well for producing a high-purity mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) product. This is a critical milestone for ABx, as the MREC sample scheduled for production in Q4 2025 will be used to engage potential customers and offtake partners, particularly in Western supply chains seeking reliable sources of heavy rare earths.

ABx’s Managing Director Mark Cooksey highlighted the strategic importance of these results, emphasizing the deposit’s high content of dysprosium and terbium, which are in acute supply risk globally. The company’s resource boasts one of the highest Dy+Tb concentrations among ionic clay deposits worldwide, positioning ABx as a potentially significant supplier outside China, where most heavy rare earth production is currently concentrated.

Next Steps and Strategic Partnerships

Following these promising extraction outcomes, ABx and ANSTO are optimizing process conditions further, including impurity removal tests using ammonium bicarbonate. The company has already signed a memorandum of understanding with Ucore Rare Metals Inc., a North American rare earth processing firm, and is in discussions with other potential offtake partners, signaling growing commercial interest.

With rare earth prices, especially for terbium and dysprosium, remaining elevated, Benchmark Minerals reports prices near US$1,000/kg for terbium oxide in China and even higher premiums in Europe, the timing could be advantageous for ABx to secure market footholds as it advances toward production.

Broader Resource and Environmental Context

The Deep Leads project resource estimate stands at 89 million tonnes averaging 844 ppm total rare earth oxides, with Dy+Tb comprising 4.4% of the total, a rare combination of scale and grade. ABx also underscores its commitment to environmental stewardship, operating only where welcomed and aiming to leave land better than found, which may ease regulatory and community engagement as the project progresses.