Essential for an electrified future
Rare earths are a critical component in the manufacture of clean energy and high-end technology solutions. As global demand increases for electrified transportation and renewable energy technologies, so does the demand for rare earths.
The high value rare earths contained in Iluka’s mineral products are used to create powerful permanent magnets, essential to the performance of wind turbines and electric vehicles. The strong outlook for these applications is expected to drive growing market demand for Iluka’s rare earth oxides, particularly neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium.
Other rare earths minerals produced from Iluka’s refinery, such as lanthanum and cerium, are necessary in the manufacture of catalytic converters for vehicle emission control of hybrid and petrol-fuelled cars, in modern rechargeable batteries, and as an alloying agent to create high-strength metals in aircraft engines.
A sustainably mined and secure supply of rare earths
Iluka’s rare earths refinery in Australia will achieve an independent supply of rare earth oxides, essential to global electrification and decarbonisation.
The highly valuable rare earths cohabitate with Iluka’s mineral sands deposits and are separated into concentrated rare earth minerals as a normal part of mineral sands processing.
These rare earth minerals, monazite and xenotime are stored in advance of additional processing steps at Iluka’s operation in Eneabba in Western Australia. This is the world’s highest grade rare earths operation.
Iluka is currently constructing Australia’s first fully integrated rare earths refinery which will have the capability to produce both light and heavy rare earth oxides. This provides customers with a new source of rare earth products sourced directly from one producer operating as an independent market participant. As Iluka’s rare earth products are produced as a co-product of Iluka’s mineral sands products, they will offer a significantly lower mining footprint in comparison to many existing producers.