REG - Rainbow Rare Earths - Further Major Advancement in Phalaborwa Test Work

Rainbow Rare EarthsAnnouncement

22/09/2025 07:00

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RNS Number : 1279A  Rainbow Rare Earths Limited  22 September 2025

 

22 September 2025

Rainbow Rare Earths Limited

("Rainbow" or "the Company")

LSE: RBW

 

Further Major Advancement in Phalaborwa Test Work with Cerium Rejection
Success

 

·      Rainbow has achieved a further important advancement of the
Phalaborwa test work via the successful incorporation of a cerium ("Ce")
depletion step ahead of the final separation circuit

·     This further enhances the quality of the high grade mixed rare
earth product ("MREP")' recently announced, by reducing the Ce content in the
MREP by ca. 65%

·      It also reduces the volumetric flow for the mixed rare earth feed
stream entering the final separation circuit, thereby positively impacting
both capital and operating costs for this portion of the flowsheet

·      This achievement demonstrates the unique IP and understanding
developed by Rainbow of the recovery of rare earth elements ("REE") from
phosphogypsum

·      The Phalaborwa project is set to be a low-cost and responsible
producer of both the critical light and heavy REE used in permanent magnets,
which are vital to the green energy transition, defence and many other
advanced technologies

 

NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT

Rainbow Rare Earths is pleased to announce further successful results from the
ongoing test work for the Phalaborwa project in South Africa. This unique
project encompasses the recovery and separation of REE from phosphogypsum
stacks, a waste product from phosphoric acid production, meaning that many of
the costs, risks and long timescales associated with traditional mining
projects are eliminated.

 

Rainbow has been working on further optimising the feed stream to the final
separation circuit via the incorporation of a Ce depletion step. This has
successfully been achieved, benefitting both the quality of the exceptionally
pure MREP recently announced, as well as the capital and operating cost
outlook for the separation circuit.

 

George Bennett, CEO, commented: "This Ce rejection step is a major achievement
in establishing Phalaborwa as one of the world's most efficient producers of
light and heavy magnet REE worldwide, as it significantly simplifies the feed
entering the final separation circuit, both in terms of volume and in terms of
the amount of unwanted metal that must be separated. These results demonstrate
the exceptional work being carried out by our team at our in-house facilities
in Johannesburg, which is a world-class laboratory at the cutting-edge of REE
recovery techniques."

 

 

Test Work Update

As previously announced, a key component of Rainbow's test work this year has
been the delivery of a high grade, low impurity feed stream to the final
separation process, as this is expected to be key to reaching separated rare
earth oxides of the desired purity level.

 

Following the efficient impurity rejection work via CIX and the resultant
recovery of an exceptionally pure MREP averaging >55% total rare earths
oxide ("TREO") and with a TREO purity of >93%, Rainbow has been working on
further optimising the feed stream to the final separation circuit via the
incorporation of a Ce rejection step.

 

Ce is a low-value REE (valued at ca. US$1/kg) but it constitutes a large
portion of REE material.  Its early depletion ahead of final separation is
therefore desirable as it reduces the flow and simplifies subsequent
hydrometallurgical processes, thereby lowering the required reagent and water
consumption, which results in a smaller separation plant with reduced capital
and operating costs.

 

The incorporation of the Ce depletion step to the Phalaborwa flowsheet has
helped to reduce the volumetric flow to the separation circuit to
approximately 2% of the original 340 m(3)/h pregnant leach solution ("PLS")
coming into the primary CIX circuit, and has the added benefit that there will
be ca. 27% less metal going into the circuit that would need to be dealt
with.

 

Rainbow has therefore achieved a major advancement in the Phalaborwa process
by successfully reducing the amount of Ce in its exceptionally pure MREP by
ca. 65%, further enhancing this high-grade product. These results have been
confirmed via multiple tests.

 

Rainbow is now focused on finalising the separation component of the
Phalaborwa flowsheet, which is set to produce a high purity neodymium and
praseodymium ("NdPr") oxide and a SEG+ product, which will be a mix of medium
and heavy REE, including the very high value dysprosium ("Dy") and terbium
("Tb"). Rainbow anticipates this workstream to be finalised in Q4 2025.

 

 

For further information, please contact:

 

 Rainbow Rare Earths Ltd   Company  George Bennett         +27 (0) 82 652 8526

                                    Pete Gardner
                           IR       Cathy Malins           +44 (0) 7876 796 629

                                                           cathym@rainbowrareearths.com (mailto:cathym@rainbowrareearths.com)
 Tavistock Communications  PR/IR    Charles Vivian         +44 (0) 20 7920 3150

                                    Eliza Logan            rainbowrareearths@tavistock.co.uk (mailto:rainbowrareearths@tavistock.co.uk)
 Berenberg                 Broker   Matthew Armitt         +44 (0) 20 3207 7800

                                    Jennifer Lee

 Stifel                    Broker   Ashton Clanfield       +44 (0) 20 7710 7600

                                    Varun Talwar

 

Notes to Editors:

 

About Rainbow:

Rainbow Rare Earths aims to be a forerunner in the establishment of an
independent and ethical supply chain of the rare earth elements that are
driving the green energy transition. It is doing this successfully via
pioneering the first commercial recovery of rare earth elements from
phosphogypsum that occurs as the by-product of phosphoric acid production.
These projects eliminate the cost and risk of typical rare earth projects,
which involve mining and the production of a rare earth concentrate that must
be chemically cracked to form a mixed rare earth carbonate before further
downstream processing. As such, Rainbow's projects can be brought into
production quicker and at a lower cost than traditional hard rock mining
projects.

The Company is focused on the development of the Phalaborwa Project in South
Africa and the earlier stage Uberaba Project in Brazil. Rainbow's process will
deliver separated rare earth oxides through a single hydrometallurgical plant
on site, with a focus on the recovery of neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium
and terbium. These are critical components of the high-performance permanent
magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, defence and exciting new
markets such as robotics and advanced air mobility.

The Phalaborwa updated interim economic study released in December 2024 has
confirmed strong base line economics for the project, which has a base case
NPV(10) of US$611 million. Given Phalaborwa is a chemical processing
operation, with its resource sitting at surface in a chemically cracked form,
it has a much lower operating cost than traditional rare earth mining
projects, and it is therefore estimated to be the highest margin rare earth
project in development today outside of China.

More information is available at www.rainbowrareearths.com
(http://www.rainbowrareearths.com/) or by visiting the Rainbow Rare Earths
Curation Showcase at: Curation Connect - Rainbow Rare Earths Showcase
(https://app.curationconnect.com/company/Rainbow-Rare-Earths-90903?utm_source=media&utm_campaign=media&utm_id=media)
or https://app.curationconnect.com/company/Rainbow-Rare-Earths-90903
(https://app.curationconnect.com/company/Rainbow-Rare-Earths-90903)

 www.curationconnect.com (http://www.curationconnect.com)

 

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