Iondrive’s IONSolv™ Hits 93.5% Dysprosium Recovery, Rewriting Rare Earth Economics

Breakthrough in Heavy Rare Earth Recovery

Iondrive Limited (ASX:ION) has reported a significant leap in its rare earth element (REE) recycling technology, with independent validation confirming a 93.5% recovery of dysprosium (Dy) from commercial US e-waste feedstock. This result dramatically outperforms the 32.5% recovery assumed in the company’s November 2025 techno-economic analysis (TEA), marking a pivotal advance in targeting heavy rare earth elements (HREs) within the magnet bundle.

Dysprosium is one of the most supply-constrained and valuable elements in permanent magnets, critical for high-performance applications such as electric vehicle motors and wind turbines. The ability to recover Dy at such high efficiency materially enhances the economic proposition of Iondrive’s IONSolv™ platform and reshapes its product value story.

Maintaining Strength in Light Rare Earths and Iron Rejection

Alongside the breakthrough in heavy rare earth recovery, Iondrive has further improved its extraction of light rare earths neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr), achieving 96.5% recovery for both elements; up from previous results of 93.8% and 95.1% respectively announced in April 2026. These elements underpin the bulk of magnet market value, reinforcing the platform’s strong position across the REE spectrum.

The company also quantified iron rejection for the first time, demonstrating near-complete removal (99.9%) of iron impurities via a solvent-extraction step without co-extracting target rare earths. This advancement addresses a key processing challenge given the iron-rich nature of commercial e-waste feedstocks and supports improved selectivity and solvent recycling in the flowsheet.

Robust Validation on Commercial Feedstock and Strategic Partnerships

The validation work was conducted in the US by Kingston Process Metallurgy Inc., with feedstock supplied by Colt Recycling LLC under a binding agreement. Notably, the e-waste material had higher iron content and lower rare earth grades than the TEA assumptions, underscoring the robustness of IONSolv™ chemistry even on suboptimal commercial feedstocks.

Iondrive’s collaboration with Colt is central to its multi-feedstock commercialisation strategy, which includes sorted e-waste ferrous streams, OEM production scrap, and end-of-life motor stators from EV drivetrains and wind turbines. This diversified approach aims to secure scalable, higher-grade feedstocks to underpin future plant deployments.

Pathway to Commercialisation and Economic Upside

The original TEA modelled a 2,000 tonnes per annum modular plant with a capital expenditure of US$4.6 million, delivering a net present value of US$7 million, a 46% internal rate of return, and a payback period of 2.6 years. With the newly demonstrated recovery rates, particularly for dysprosium, these economic parameters are expected to improve significantly. Iondrive plans to update the TEA and progress to a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS), advancing the modular, hub-and-spoke deployment model that allows staged capital investment close to feedstock sources.

Managing Director Lewis Utting emphasised the strategic importance of these results, noting the alignment with US supply-chain resilience priorities and the platform’s technical and commercial viability. The company is now focusing on optimising pre-treatment processes and engaging with partners to secure higher-grade feedstock streams, aiming to solidify the commercial case ahead of the PFS.