Viridis turns Colossus economics into execution momentum

Colossus shifts from feasibility into project execution

Viridis Mining and Minerals Limited (ASX:VMM) is no longer presenting Colossus as simply a promising study-stage rare earths project. Its September quarter report describes a project moving into execution, backed by a completed Definitive Feasibility Study, early procurement and up to US$120 million of strategic equity commitments. The DFS puts the headline after-tax NPV8 at US$1.20 billion, with a 36.4% after-tax IRR and a 2.7-year payback under the company’s spot-price assumptions.

Those figures are broadly consistent with the but the relevant cross-link is placed below in its permitted format: the company’s August DFS and equity package had already set out the project’s economic case and strategic funding commitments. The September report now frames those milestones as the platform for engineering, procurement and financing activity rather than as an endpoint.

Equity is addressed, but debt and approvals remain

Colossus carries estimated initial development capital of US$449 million, including US$44 million of contingency. Viridis says the strategic equity commitments, anchored by One Investment Management’s commitment of up to US$75 million, address the indicative US$135 million equity component of a targeted 70% senior debt and 30% equity funding structure.

Quarter-end cash stood at A$119.7 million after the company issued 30.88 million shares at A$3.79, raising approximately A$117 million before costs. Pro forma cash of about A$200 million, or US$140 million, includes outstanding OneIM, ORE and Régia investments, but remains subject to conditions and completion. The distinction matters: the headline funding position is not yet the same as cash received.

Senior debt financing is still progressing, with Goldman Sachs and Cutfield Freeman & Co. working with prospective commercial lenders, export credit agencies and development finance institutions. Viridis has opened its lender data room and appointed an Independent Engineer, while support letters from Export Finance Australia, Export Development Canada and Bpifrance remain potential financing pathways rather than committed debt.

Engineering and equipment orders protect the 2028 schedule

Sedgman and Blossom have been selected as the preferred EPCM partner, with up to US$3 million approved for pre-FID mobilisation, detailed engineering and procurement planning. The full EPCM appointment remains subject to final contractual terms and FID, but the staged approach allows the company to advance design maturity without committing the entire project before that decision.

The quarter also saw the first major equipment order, with Dewater awarded the residue pressure filtration package after a 12-month tender and technical evaluation. The package has an expected manufacturing period of 52 to 56 weeks and includes staged milestones and a hold point before full notice to proceed. That follows the first Colossus equipment order, which secured the same critical-path filtration technology while limiting pre-FID exposure.

Demonstration plant supports recovery and product qualification

Viridis reported average MREO recovery of 78.7% during a five-day stabilised operating period from 6 to 10 July 2026, compared with the 76% Northern Concessions assumption used in its PFS. The result came from bulk feed collected at a single Northern Concessions location, so it provides useful operating evidence but is not a broad demonstration of every ore domain or future commercial condition.

The demonstration plant also produced MREC samples sent to Solvay’s La Rochelle facility for downstream qualification. Commercial terms for a supply offtake agreement and a licensing and technical services agreement are described as largely agreed, but definitive documentation and qualification testing remain outstanding. A binding offtake would support the financing process; it has not yet been secured.

Ore reserves underpin a long-life rare earths plan

The DFS is based on a 5Mtpa operation over a 25-year Production Target, supported entirely by 200.1Mt of Ore Reserves at 2,894ppm TREO and 715ppm MREO. The reserve includes 27.4Mt of Proved material and 172.7Mt of Probable material, while the broader 473Mt Mineral Resource leaves potential mine-life flexibility beyond the evaluated period.

Average annual production is forecast at approximately 4,446 tonnes of refined rare earth oxides, including 2,841 tonnes of NdPr and 126 tonnes of DyTb. The project’s additional refining circuit is intended to remove lower-value lanthanum and lift NdPr and DyTb to about 63.9% and 2.8% of refined product rare earth oxide content, respectively. Installation Licence approval, further operating approvals and the Final Investment Decision remain the gates between this design case and construction.