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The world’s biggest non-Chinese unusual earths miner is raising more than $500mn to broaden operations and target stakes in United States magnet makers, as western federal governments attempt to suppress Beijing’s impact on worldwide products of important minerals.
Australia’s Lynas, which has mines in Western Australia and a refinery in Malaysia, stated on Thursday it was raising A$ 825mn (US$ 538mn) in equity to grow its stockpiles and capability and purchase “downstream” magnet makers in Malaysia and the United States. Uncommon earths are utilized to make irreversible magnets in weapons systems, electrical lorries, medical devices and even bike frames.
” We wish to have the ability to take part, either on a functional or a supply or an equity basis in this part of the supply chain,” stated Amanda Lacaze, president of Lynas, throughout a financier contact Thursday.
The United States federal government has actually been pressing to develop capability in unusual earths mining to counter China, last month purchasing a stake in Las Vegas-based MP Products. The business held merger talks with Lynas that failed in 2015.
Washington has actually likewise set a decade-long rate flooring for unusual earths at almost double the present market rate. Lacaze stated Lynas was participated in talks with the United States, Australian and Japanese federal governments on rate floorings and comparable actions to assist establish a non-Chinese supply chain of unusual earths.
Lynas is currently the biggest unusual earths miner outside China, having actually gotten Japanese funding over the previous years to establish a supply chain for “light” unusual earths, utilized in making irreversible magnets and mobile phones.
It likewise has support from Australian mining billionaire Gina Rinehart and, in the previous year, has actually broadened into processing “heavy” unusual earths, likewise required for magnets however less plentiful.
” Lynas broke the Chinese monopoly on lights in 2013. This year, in 2025, we broke the Chinese monopoly on heavies,” stated Lacaze.
The Lynas chief warned there was still “substantial unpredictability” surrounding the future of its Seadrift task to develop a United States defence department-backed unusual earths center in Texas, due to problems with offtake contracts.
Lynas reported net revenue of A$ 8mn for the year ended June 30, below A$ 84.5 mn in 2015, due to the fact that of production problems and the expense of growth. Profits increased 20 percent to A$ 556mn.
The fundraising remains in the kind of a completely underwritten share problem and an extra A$ 75mn share purchase prepare for existing investors.