Lynas opens Kalgoorlie Rare Earths Processing Facility

Lynas Rare Earths officially opened its Kalgoorlie Rare Earths Processing Facility on Friday with a ceremony officiated by Resources Minister Madeleine King, Lynas Rare Earths Board Chair John Humphrey and Lynas CEO Amanda Lacaze.

The company says the facility is a key part of its 2025 growth plan that was first announced in May 2019. The $800 million large-scale facility was delivered in less than two and a half years from the receipt of full construction approvals.

“This was an ambitious project which established downstream rare earths processing in Australia for the first time,” Lacaze said. “It was a foundational project for our Lynas 2025 growth strategy and a significant financial investment for Lynas and our shareholders.

“I’m proud of the way our team embraced the challenge. We have created a state-of-the-art rare earths processing facility and a new, future-facing industry for the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.”

“This opening is a big deal for Kalgoorlie, a huge deal for Western Australia and a massive step for Australia,” King said. “Projects like the Lynas Rare Earths Processing Facility will deliver direct economic benefits to Australia while strengthening our sovereign capability.”

“As the only significant ex-China producer of separated rare earths, Lynas plays an important role in the global rare earths supply chain,” Lacaze said. “The mixed rare earth carbonate produced in Kalgoorlie is shipped to our Malaysian facility for separation into individual products, and in future will supply our planned US facility.

“We thank the Australian Government, the Western Australian Government and the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder for their support in the development of the Kalgoorlie Rare Earths Processing Facility.”

Image caption: The Lynas Malaysia production line.