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Amanda Lacaze on the rare earths market and Lynas’ Mt Weld resource

“We have three significant things that set us apart. The first is our Mt Weld resource which is recognized as a premier resource throughout the world. It is true Tier 1 Resource: high-grade, long life. It is so high grade that some of it we don’t even need to put it through concentrator to process it. The second thing is that we have the benefit of being first in the market. We are the only non-Chinese miner and processor of any scale. And the third… we have been running our rare earths separation plant here in Malaysia for over six years and we have developed IP (Intellectual property) within our business with respect to how to separate those materials (rare earths).” States Amanda Lacaze, Managing Director and CEO of Lynas Corporation Ltd. (ASX: LYC), in an interview with InvestorIntel’s Tracy Weslosky.

Amanda went on to comment on the ongoing trade war between China and the US. She said that having major international economies speaking about rare earths is a positive thing. She added, “The rare earths market is quite a small market. If you are for example the CEO of a car company, you are not going to care about rare earths if you are looking at your bill of materials. In a $25,000 bill of materials, rare earths may only be a couple of hundred dollars. You are going to care about rare earths when you can’t get them because you cannot put your car on the road”. She further added in the 2011 rare earths crisis Japan funded Lynas, as a result, the Japanese rare earths processing market and consumption has increased by about 60% since 2012. If there is a secure and reliable supply there is a strong and growing market.

Amanda also said that the increased interest in rare earths at this time is a net positive as a lot of outside-China markets and customers are thinking very seriously about how they are going to secure their future needs. She further added that the demand for rare earths outside China remains very strong and the US and Australia have referenced that both the countries will continue to work closely and work even more closely on the supply of critical minerals and rare earths in particular.

To access the complete interview, click here