Rare earth: plans approved for Yangibana plant in Hastings

Hastings Technology Metals has received environmental approval from the Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment (DAWE) for a hydrometallurgical plant in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia.

The Onslow rare earth plant will be constructed in the Ashburton Northern Strategic Industrial Area (ANSIA), 250 kilometres southwest of Dampier, to optimise the processing of rare earth oxide concentrate from the company’s undeveloped Yangibana project.

The Commonwealth’s environmental approval will allow Hastings to build the Onslow plant to a full production rate of 15,000 tonnes of MREC (mixed rare earth carbonate) per year, unlocking high quality, praseodymium-rich rare earth carbonate concentrate.

Construction of the Onslow plant will begin in 2022, after the initial work at Yangibana has been completed, with the first MREC scheduled for production in early 2024.

The MREC produced by the eventual plant could be used in sustainable technologies such as permanent magnets in products including electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics, medical applications and digital devices.

The acceleration of decarbonisation globally over the past 12 months has given increasing impetus for the Yangibana project to play a vital role in the transition to a cleaner energy mix, a message that is coming through loud and clear from partners in Europe and Asia.