The Elements of Innovation Discovered
The Elements of Innovation Discovered
Commissioning of Saskatoon REE extraction facility underway Metal Tech News - June 17, 2022
The dense media separation plant now operating at Vital Metals' Saskatoon rare earth elements extraction facility.
Ore from Vital's Nechalacho rare earths mine moves through the dense media separation plant at the Saskatoon facility.
To forge the second link in a wholly North American rare earths supply chain, Vital Metals Ltd. has begun feeding ore mined from its Nechalacho project in Northwest Territories into a dense media separation plant at its new rare earths extraction facility in Saskatchewan, Canada.
The first link in this REE supply chain was established when Vital began mining high-grade ore from Nechalacho last year, which made the Australia-based miner Canada's first and only producer of the rare earths that are in high demand for electric vehicles, wind turbines, and other high-tech and commercial products.
In the world of rare earths, however, mining is but the first in a three-step process required to separate this suite of 15 technology elements into the individual metals that can be used by industry.
The second step is to upgrade concentrates produced at a mine into a mixed rare earth carbonate, which is where Vital's rare earth extraction facility near Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, comes in.
Last year, Vital began mining the already high-grade ore found in a deposit that comes to the surface at Nechalacho and then used an ore sorter to upgrade this material to even higher-grade concentrates that were shipped to Saskatchewan.
These concentrates are now being fed into a newly installed dense media separation plant at the Saskatoon extraction facility.
"This is an exciting step for the company as we continue our transition from rare earth developer to operator," said Vital Metals Managing Director Geoff Atkins. "We have been a rare earth miner for more than 12 months and now we can commence production of rare earth carbonate. We are excited to have reached this milestone at Saskatoon despite the challenges surrounding supply chains and logistics across the world."
During the commissioning phase, which will continue over the coming months, Vital plans to produce a 2.5-metric-ton mixed rare earth carbonate sample that is ready for the third link in the rare earths supply chain – separation.
The mixed rare earth carbonates produced in Saskatchewan are to be shipped to REEtec, a Norway-based company that has developed an efficient and environmentally sound REE separation technology, for this final stage of processing.
Under an offtake agreement with REEtec, Vital will deliver roughly 500 metric tons of total rare earth oxides to the Northway separation plant by October of next year. This carbonate is expected to contain 187.5 metric tons of neodymium-praseodymium, a mix of two rare earths that are a primary ingredient in the powerful neodymium-iron-boron magnets used in EV motors, wind turbine generators, and countless other products.
Following this initial delivery, Vital will provide REEtec with 2,000 metric tons of rare earth carbonates containing at least 750 metric tons of neodymium-praseodymium annually over five years.
During the commissioning of the Saskatoon facility, Vital will focus on producing a product that meets REEtec specifications while minimizing off-spec production that would create waste. Vital will ship the rare earth carbonate produced during commissioning to REEtec for qualification.
In addition to its agreement with REEtec, Vital has entered into a preliminary agreement to supply Ucore Rare Metals Inc. with rare earth carbonate to be processed at that company's planned Alaska Strategic Metals Complex.
To be developed near the Southeast Alaska port town of Ketchikan, Ucore's Alaska SMC rare earths separation facility is slated for completion in 2024.
Under a memorandum of understanding, Vital will sell Ucore at least 500 metric tons of mixed rare earth oxides per year, which will provide a feedstock for the Alaska SMC – establishing a complete REE supply chain in North America.
An in-depth look at this developing Northwest Territories-Saskatchewan-Alaska value chain can be read at A North of 60 rare earths supply chain in the October 29, 2021 edition of North of 60 Mining News.
Vital's Saskatoon facility is adjacent to a rare earth processing plant being developed by Saskatchewan Research Council, which is part of an initiative to establish a rare earths hub in the Canadian province.
SRC is also providing technical support during the construction and operation of the plant as part of an ongoing collaboration, allowing Vital and SRC to maximize potential synergies between the side-by-side rare earths operations.
Vital expects to complete the commissioning and product qualification phase and begin ramping up to commercial production at its Saskatoon rare earth extraction facility by October.
With more than 16 years of covering mining, Shane is renowned for his insights and and in-depth analysis of mining, mineral exploration and technology metals.
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