Iondrive Targets 1.4 Tonnes of Rare Earth Oxide in North America Campaign

Iondrive Advances Commercial-Scale Rare Earth Production

Iondrive Limited (ASX:ION) has commissioned its inaugural five-tonne IONSolv™ production campaign in North America, targeting approximately 1.4 tonnes of mixed rare earth oxide (MREO) for Q4 2026. The campaign marks a pivotal shift from laboratory validation towards a commercial batch scale, aiming to generate sufficient material for multiple downstream customer qualification and refining programs.

The company will process about five tonnes of end-of-life neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) permanent magnets; sourced from North American supply chains; using its proprietary IONSolv™ technology at an established third-party facility operated by Kingston Process Metallurgy Inc. This approach offers a capital-light pathway to producing bulk samples without the upfront cost of building dedicated processing infrastructure.

Tapping Into US Rare Earth Recycling Potential

The United States faces an urgent need to secure domestic rare earth supplies, especially neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium, critical for defence, automotive, energy, and advanced manufacturing sectors. While new mines and separation plants are under development, their operational timelines stretch several years ahead.

Iondrive’s strategy leverages the substantial quantities of rare earths already embedded in end-of-life permanent magnets from motors, electronics, and industrial equipment within North America. The campaign aims to recover these elements efficiently, contributing to a secure and traceable US supply chain.

Technical Ambitions and Recovery Targets

Based on representative assays indicating about 30% rare earth oxide content in the magnet feedstock and targeting an overall recovery rate of approximately 95%, the campaign expects to yield around 1.4 tonnes of MREO. While prior validation work showed unaudited single-pass leach efficiencies of roughly 96.5% for neodymium and praseodymium and 93.5% for dysprosium, the campaign will test overall flowsheet recovery at scale.

This batch production will be the largest IONSolv™ campaign to date and the first to produce a tonne-scale MREO parcel for customer qualification, enabling potential customers to assess product quality, composition, and compatibility with their refining processes.

Bridging Validation and Commercial Deployment

By partnering with Kingston Process Metallurgy and overseen by ProProcess Engineering, Iondrive avoids the capital expenditure of building a pilot plant, instead using existing North American infrastructure to advance its commercialisation pathway. The data and product samples generated will inform the engineering and approval stages for Iondrive’s proposed first US commercial module, designed to process 2,000 tonnes of magnet feedstock annually.

The company is actively negotiating with potential feedstock suppliers and customers, with final commercial terms and supply agreements to be announced as they are finalised.

CEO Highlights Strategic Importance

Chief Executive Officer Grant Caffery emphasised the immediacy of US demand for rare earths and the opportunity presented by recycling end-of-life magnets. He described the campaign as a practical, capital-light step to transition from kilogram-scale validation to tonne-scale production, underpinning disciplined commercial execution and supporting US supply chain independence.