Energy Fuels and Astron are collaborating on the joint development of the Donald Rare Earth and Mineral Sands Project, a critical mineral deposit located in Australia, which will help increase resources for clean technologies and electric vehicles.
The companies said the the Donald Project's “shovel ready” deposit located in the Wimmera Region of Victoria would offer a near-term, low-cost, source of about 7,000 tons of rare earth-bearing monazite sand each year starting in 2026, then 14,000 tons annually in the years following. Monazite sand contains rare earth elements (REE) such as uranium, titanium, and other critical minerals needed for EV battery production and other clean energy technologies.
According to the companies, the Donald Project could supply enough critical elements to produce about 1.4 million EVs each year.
Energy Fuels has proposed an investment of about $180 million in the Donald Project toward this goal and would issue common shares to Astron with a $17.5 million value. The company's investment is expected to cover the capital required for construction of the first phase of the project, while Astron will maintain a 51% interest and be considered the manager and operator of the project. Under the joint venture, Energy Fuels will also enter an offtake agreement for 100% of the Donald Project’s REE production from the first two phases of the work.
“Energy Fuels is working to secure future large-scale in-situ rare earth element projects around the world, which we expect to become low-cost sources of feed to supply our U.S.-centric REE supply chain in the coming years," said Mark Chalmers, president and CEO of Energy Fuels. "Energy Fuels' goal is to source monazite from the U.S. and around the world and become a reliable, globally diversified, multi-decade supplier of U.S.-produced magnet REE oxides to EV manufacturers and other end-users.”
Overall, Energy Fuels said it aims to secure additional REE offtake, joint venture, and direct ownership agreements in order to strengthen the U.S. REE supply chain and reduce the country's reliance on REEs from China. At present, more than 80% of the U.S. rare earth mineral demand relies on international suppliers.
The joint venture is accompanied by private investment and government-led initiatives to bolster the U.S. rare earth mineral supply chain. The Department of Energy recently announced an investment of $30 million to help reduce costs associated with onshore production of rare earth minerals and to harness domestic resources.
The rare earth industry is expected to face supply shortages as demand ramps up for renewable energy technologies and electric vehicles.
According to a recent report from McKinsey & Company, investment in mining, refining, and smelting will need to increase by about $3 trillion to $4 trillion by 2030 to meet demand. Some corporations have looked to rare earth mineral recycling as well to meet this increased demand.
