A major deposit of vital rare earth materials in Wyoming is larger than earlier estimates, the project’s developer announced recently.
More than 2.6 Billion Tonnes
American Rare Earths and subsidiary Wyoming Rare said the latest evaluation estimated the total resource at the Halleck Creek site at 2.63 billion tonnes—up more than 12% from an earlier projection. Company officials said the new estimate reinforces the site’s position as one of the largest deposits of rare earth materials in North America and highlights its potential strategic importance for the U.S.
American Rare Earths President and CEO Chris Gibbs noted that with additional exploration, the company could have opportunities to further “expand mineral resource estimates.”
Building a Rare Earth Supply
Rare earth materials are a collection of 17 elements that are critically important to advanced and emerging technologies and systems, including batteries, magnets, and catalysts. Although they are not especially “rare,” the market for them is dominated by China, and observers have stressed the need to develop a domestic source of the materials to alleviate economic and geopolitical pressures in key industries.
Next Steps
American Rare Earths said that the new data is being incorporated into a new version of a “scoping study” first released last spring; an updated edition of the study is slated to be released in February. The company is also conducting metallurgical testing and compiling a “pre-feasability study.” The latter, set to be finished later this year, would pave the way to continued site development and, eventually, commercial production, officials said.
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