Viridis Mining and Minerals has secured approval for a R$77.5 million BNDES financing facility, reducing the estimated senior debt still required for its Colossus rare earth project to about US$280 million. The 16-year facility carries an indicative current cost of approximately 4.8% and supports the project’s Brazilian processing and research infrastructure.
- R$77.5 million BNDES facility approved for Viridis’ Brazilian subsidiary
- 16-year term includes four-year grace period and 12-year amortisation
- Indicative current financing cost of approximately 4.8%
- Remaining Colossus senior debt requirement reduced to about US$280 million
- Funding supports CPTR development, plant operations and RD&I activities
BNDES Approval Shrinks Colossus Funding Gap
Viridis Mining and Minerals Limited (ASX:VMM) has converted a year-old Brazilian government backing process into a concrete financing approval, with BNDES agreeing to provide R$77.5 million, or approximately US$15 million, to its wholly owned Brazilian subsidiary. The facility reduces the estimated senior debt still needed for the US$449 million Colossus development to approximately US$280 million when combined with US$154 million of identified equity funding.
The financing is not a new equity raising, but it is meaningful balance-sheet support for a project moving from technical development towards execution. Viridis said a significant portion of the eligible expenditure has already been incurred, meaning the facility is expected to reimburse a meaningful share of that spending and strengthen available funding. Customary documentation and execution remain outstanding.
Long-Term Brazilian Funding at Indicative 4.8% Cost
The BNDES facility runs for 16 years, comprising a four-year grace period followed by 12 years of amortisation. Its interest rate is TR plus 2.70% a year. Based on an annualised TR of approximately 2.1% in August 2026, Viridis puts the current indicative financing cost at about 4.8%.
That rate is not fixed in the announcement: the TR component can change. Even so, the combination of a long tenor, an extended grace period and government-backed funding gives Viridis a relatively patient source of capital while it continues arranging the much larger senior debt package.
CPTR Funding Supports Colossus Process Development
The money will fund eligible expenditure linked to Viridis’ Continuous Pilot Test Reactor, or CPTR, in Poços de Caldas, Minas Gerais, as well as ongoing plant operations and research, development and innovation activities. The facility includes the company’s mixed rare earth carbonate demonstration plant and associated research capabilities.
Viridis says the CPTR is designed to reproduce key operating conditions for the proposed industrial-scale processing facility, allowing metallurgical optimisation, process validation, equipment testing and technology development. It produced its first MREC in May 2026 and continues work on processing routes for the ionic adsorption clays that underpin Colossus.
Senior Debt Process Remains the Next Funding Test
The approval follows Viridis’ selection by BNDES and FINEP in July 2025 under a strategic minerals support process aimed at energy-transition supply chains. It is a stronger outcome than a policy endorsement alone, but it does not complete Colossus financing: the company continues to advance its senior debt process with domestic and international lenders, with approximately US$280 million still identified as the remaining requirement.
The next important evidence will therefore be practical rather than ceremonial: execution of the BNDES documents, receipt of the reimbursement and progress towards the remaining debt package. At the same time, continued CPTR production and operating data will have to support the technical case Viridis is using to move Colossus forward.
Bottom Line?
The BNDES approval improves Colossus’ funding profile, but the project still depends on completing documentation and securing approximately US$280 million of senior debt.
Questions in the middle?
- When will the BNDES facility documentation be executed and reimbursed funds become available?
- How much of the remaining approximately US$280 million senior debt requirement can Viridis secure, and on what terms?
- Will ongoing CPTR production and metallurgical data further validate the proposed Colossus processing flowsheet?