Energy Fuels announces entry into the commercial rare earth business with Chemours supply deal

Energy Fuels Inc (TSE:EFR) (NYSEMKT:UUUU) has said it is set to become the first US company in several years to produce a marketable mixed rare earth element (REE) concentrate ready for separation on a commercial scale. This comes after the group announced that it has entered into a three-year supply agreement with The Chemours Company (NYSE:CC) to acquire a minimum of 2,500 tons per year of natural monazite sands from the Offerman Mineral Sand Plant in Georgia. Energy Fuels said it plans to process the monazite at its White Mesa Mill in Utah beginning in 1Q 2021, while also recovering the contained uranium, which it believes represents an important step toward re-establishing a fully-integrated US REE supply chain. “With our announcement today, southeast Utah is fast becoming America's clean energy and critical minerals hub,” Energy Fuels CEO Mark Chalmers said in a statement. READ: Energy Fuels is on track to begin commercial rare earth concentrate production as soon as 2021  He added: “Our goal is to domestically produce the raw materials needed for clean energy and advanced technologies, while creating green jobs in an economically challenged part of the country. Currently, the US imports nearly all of our rare earth, uranium and vanadium requirements, despite having ample supplies here in the US. "Importantly, in the United States we are highly regulated and operate to the highest standards, which means we produce these minerals more responsibly than many of the countries from which we currently import. Our agreement with Chemours may be the beginning of a real success story, not only for Energy Fuels, but also for local communities, Native Americans, conservation groups, the State of Utah, and the US as a whole.” The company estimates that the amount of REEs contained in the monazite sands to be supplied by Chemours will equal close to 10% of total current US REE demand, as contained in end-use products. Energy Fuels said it is also in discussions with other entities to acquire additional supplies of monazite and is working with the US Department of Energy to evaluate the potential to process other types of REE and uranium-bearing ores at the White Mesa Mill produced from coal-based resources. The company hopes to process 15,000-plus tons of monazite and other sources of ore per year for the recovery of REEs and uranium. Monazite sands found in the southeast US, which Energy Fuels contends is one of the highest-grade rare earth element minerals in the world, average about 55% total rare earth oxides, with approximately 22% of those being neodymium and praseodymium oxides, which are essential elements used in the manufacturing of magnets for electric vehicle motors as well as wind turbines for renewable energy generation. Energy Fuels said it expects, in time, to become among the lowest-cost REE production in the western world. The company added that it anticipates selling some, or all, of its mixed REE carbonate to buyers in Europe and/or Asia until a REE separation facility is established in the United States. The firm also announced that it will be hosting a video webcast on Tuesday, December 15, 2020, at 11:00 am ET to discuss its entry into the commercial rare earth space. Investors can click on the following link to access the presentation and the viewer-controlled webcast slides: https://produceredition.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1413420&tp_key=c38d65c963  Contact Sean at sean@proactiveinvestors.com