Ionic Rare Earths has moved its Belfast magnet recycling project closer to construction while expanding into the United States through a proposed US$100 million joint venture. The progress comes with key funding, approvals and definitive agreements still outstanding.
- Belfast planning application validated and FEED advancing toward basic engineering completion in Q2 2027
- £600,000 demonstration plant upgrade lifts planned dysprosium and terbium separation capacity to about 2 tonnes per annum
- Proposed 50-50 Missouri joint venture targets US$100 million of initial funding, but remains non-binding
- Strategic review opens potential funding or ownership changes for the Makuutu project
- A$8 million placement completed as the company targets an AIM listing in Q4 2026
Belfast project clears planning milestone
Ionic Rare Earths Limited (ASX:IXR) has put its Belfast commercial magnet recycling plant through a key gateway, with the full planning application submitted to Belfast City Council on 19 September and validated for assessment five days later. A planning determination is currently expected in the first quarter of 2027, while the company continues discussions with Northern Ireland’s environmental regulator.
The project is now moving through front-end engineering design with Tenova Advanced Technologies. Vendor selection for key plant elements is underway, with basic engineering expected to finish in the second quarter of 2027 and construction activities targeted for the third quarter. Funding remains the decisive condition: IonicRE says due diligence is nearing completion on a package intended to unlock a £12 million capital grant offered in principle by the UK Department for Business and Trade and Advanced Propulsion Centre UK. The company previously flagged that funding risk remained material alongside its A$14.9 million FY2026 loss in its FY2026 funding warning.
Demonstration plant shifts towards heavier rare earths
A £600,000 upgrade at Ionic Technologies’ Belfast demonstration plant has replaced reaction vessels, improved comminution and ventilation, and expanded the heavy rare earth separation circuit. The upgraded solvent extraction unit is designed to process approximately two tonnes per annum of separated dysprosium and terbium, with higher product-purity specifications.
More than 30 magnet feedstock types have now been processed through the plant. Magnet pre-treatment has operated at its stated 30-tonne-per-year nameplate rate during 2026, leaving approximately four tonnes of mixed rare earth oxide stockpiled while the separation circuit was upgraded. Separation campaigns are planned for the December quarter, with the resulting technical data intended to support customer qualification and offtake discussions. IonicRE also says piloting with US-based Nth Cycle is planned to begin in the first quarter of 2027.
Missouri expansion remains conditional
The company has also advanced its US strategy through a proposed 50-50 joint venture with US Strategic Metals at the latter’s fully permitted 728.4-hectare site near Fredericktown, Missouri. The parties intend to build facilities for recycling neodymium-iron-boron and samarium-cobalt magnets, with an initial funding plan of US$100 million, comprising US$95 million from USSM and a US$5 million equity contribution split equally between the partners. The proposal develops the Missouri recycling JV announced in September, but the term sheet remains non-binding and requires definitive agreements, capital contributions and other conditions before implementation.
In Brazil, IonicRE received a four-kilogram sample of mixed rare earth carbonate from Viridis Mining and Minerals’ Colossus Project for refinery testwork, while preliminary designs progressed for the proposed Centre for Rare Earths Innovation, Technology and Recycling. At Makuutu in Uganda, the company has started a strategic review covering potential partners, funding structures and alternative listings. No transaction or ownership change has been decided, leaving the project’s strategic interest unconverted into a defined corporate outcome.
Capital base and next decision points
IonicRE completed an A$8 million placement at A$0.26 per share, issuing approximately 30.8 million shares. The raise included a US$2 million strategic investment from Argentem Creek Partners and A$500,000 of proposed director participation subject to shareholder approval. It followed the A$8 million placement that the company said would support Belfast and international expansion.
The next quarter is therefore unusually crowded for a development-stage rare earths company: IonicRE is targeting an update on Belfast funding, pre-FID package awards, completion of the USSM definitive agreements and admission to London’s AIM market. The project timelines are advancing on paper, but the critical test will be whether engineering progress and strategic interest translate into committed capital and construction-ready contracts.
Bottom Line?
IonicRE has built a broader rare earths platform, but Belfast funding and binding US agreements remain the milestones that could determine whether the pipeline becomes operating capacity.
Questions in the middle?
- Will IonicRE finalise the Belfast funding package and unlock the £12 million capital grant in the December quarter?
- Can the proposed USSM joint venture convert its non-binding term sheet into definitive agreements and funded FEED work by year-end?
- What structure, partner or funding outcome will emerge from the strategic review of Makuutu?