REG - Altona Rare Earths - Strategic Update

Altona Rare EarthsAnnouncement

12/06/2025 07:00

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RNS Number : 4945M  Altona Rare Earths PLC  12 June 2025

 

12 June 2025

 

 

ALTONA RARE EARTHS PLC

("Altona" or "the Company")

 

 

Strategic Engagement and Increasing Market Interest

 in Monte Muambe Critical Metals ProjectS

 

Altona Rare Earths PLC (LSE: REE), a resource exploration and development
company focused on critical raw materials in Africa, is pleased to provide an
update on potential strategic investment for the Monte Muambe rare earths,
gallium and fluorspar projects.

 

Highlights

 

·    Non-Disclosure Agreement ("NDA") signed with a leading international
critical metals mining industry group for potential strategic investment in
the Monte Muambe rare earths and gallium project.

·    Momentum in Monte Muambe's fluorspar project attracts increasing
attention from the European fluorspar sector - additional signed NDA to
explore project-level collaboration and funding opportunities.

·    Ongoing critical raw materials shortages and supply chain disruptions
in Europe, Asia and the United States underscore the growing strategic
relevance of Monte Muambe's rare earths, gallium, and fluorspar resources.

 

Strategic Engagements Advance Across Rare Earths and Fluorspar Streams

 

As part of its stated strategy to secure long-term partnerships across the
critical raw materials value chain for Monte Muambe, Altona is pleased to
report material progress in its engagement with prospective strategic
partners.

 

The Company has signed an NDA with a leading international critical metals
industry group for potential strategic investment in the Monte Muambe rare
earths and gallium project, marking a significant step forward. Representative
ore samples have been sent to the potential partner for independent analysis,
as part of a technical review of project data.

 

Simultaneously, continued progress on the Monte Muambe fluorspar project,
combined with the recent expansion of its scope, has catalysed strong interest
from established participants in the European fluorspar market, and in
Mozambique. Altona has now entered into an NDA, and is expecting to enter into
another NDA shortly, with European entities operating in the fluorspar sector.
These agreements create a framework to assess potential collaboration across
extraction, offtake, and staged project-level funding.

 

Constructive and fast-moving exchanges of information are underway under these
NDAs, and the Company looks forward to updating the market as these
discussions advance towards potential commercial agreements.

 

Favourable Geopolitical Dynamics Reinforce Strategic Value

 

The strategic importance of critical raw materials, and the vulnerability of
global supply chains, have gained prominence over the past years, amid
increasing manufacturers exposure to geopolitical risks. To address this
situation, policies have been created, and updated, across Western
jurisdictions.

 

What were previously regarded as theoretical risks have recently materialised
in the form of trade wars revolving around US tariffs policies, as well as
critical raw materials export bans by China, which have now translated into
real-world impacts, with significant disruptions of industrial outputs and
defence readiness.

 

Recent commentary from the European Association of Automotive Suppliers
(CLEPA) highlighted that export restrictions on key raw materials have already
led to production halts across several European automotive plants, with
similar disruptions reported in the United States and Japan((1)).
Concurrently, availability issues and resulting price pressure have emerged
across rare earth magnets and gallium-based electronic components supply
chains((2)), underlining the urgent need for diversified, reliable supply
sources.

 

CEO Comments

 

Cedric Simonet, CEO of Altona, commented:

 

"We are seeing a marked shift from high-level policy reflections on critical
material risks to immediate and tangible impacts on critical high-technology
and defence industries. This evolution is amplifying strategic interest in
Monte Muambe, which is uniquely positioned with multiple critical raw
materials in development.

 

"Our technical milestones - combined with a supportive geopolitical backdrop -
are opening up compelling opportunities to partner with experienced players in
the rare earths and fluorspar sectors. We are encouraged by the level of
engagement from potential strategic investors and look forward to updating
shareholders as these discussions evolve."

 

(1)
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2025/06/07/rare-earths-china-s-magnet-war-threatens-global-industry_6742102_19.html
(https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2025/06/07/rare-earths-china-s-magnet-war-threatens-global-industry_6742102_19.html)

(2)
https://electronics360.globalspec.com/article/22297/expect-shortages-higher-costs-amid-china-s-rare-earth-cuts
(https://electronics360.globalspec.com/article/22297/expect-shortages-higher-costs-amid-china-s-rare-earth-cuts)

 

To subscribe for RNS alerts, please visit: https://investors.altonare.com/
(https://investors.altonare.com/)

 

-ends-

 

Altona Rare Earths Plc

Cédric Simonet, CEO
                                      +44 (0) 7778 866 108

Louise Adrian,
CFO
+44 (0) 7721 492 922

 

Strand Hanson (Financial Adviser)
 
 +44 (0) 20 7409 3494

Christopher Raggett

 

 

About Altona Rare Earths Plc

 

Altona is a resource exploration and development company focused on critical
raw materials in Africa. The Company is listed on the Main Market of the
London Stock Exchange with the ticker "REE". The Company currently holds
copper, fluorspar and rare earths projects.

 

The Monte Muambe rare earths, gallium and fluorspar project is located in
Northwest Mozambique. The Project was acquired in June 2021, and the Company
has so far drilled over 7,800m, and defined a maiden JORC Mineral Resource
Estimate of 13.6 million tons at 2.42% TREO. A Competent Person Report
including the Scoping Study for Monte Muambe was published on 18 October 2023.
The Project is now at Prefeasibility Study stage, with a focus on
metallurgical testing for rare earths extraction.

 

The Company is assessing the possibility of rapidly putting in production
high-grade fluorspar veins occurring at Monte Muambe along the western margin
of the rare earth bearing carbonatite intrusion. The Company is also assessing
the potential of recently discovered gallium occurrences.

 

Altona is presently diversifying its portfolio by acquiring a limited number
of critical raw material projects to complement Monte Muambe. The acquisitions
of the Kabompo South copper project in Zambia and of the Sesana copper-silver
project in Botswana, located just 25 km from MMG's Khoemacau Zone 5
copper-silver mine, represent the first steps towards the implementation of
this expanded strategy.

 

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