Phalaborwa, South Africa / Rare Earths
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Phalaborwa is a long-life, low cost project located in the Limpopo region of South Africa. Amongst the highest quality rare earth projects globally, it is expected to generate strong cash flows throughout the commodity price cycle.
Development
Rare Earths
Rainbow Rare Earths
South Africa
Royalty rate and type
0.85% GRR
Balance sheet classification Royalty financial instrument
Key facts
16
Year mine life
15%
Increase in Mineral Resource Estimate
Phalaborwa is located in the Limpopo region of South Africa and is 85% owned by Rainbow Rare Earths, who have the right to acquire 100% ownership of the Project. It has a total JORC compliant MRE2of 30.4Mt at 0.44% TREO contained within phosphogypsum in two unconsolidated stacks derived from historic phosphate hard rock mining. High value neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) oxide, critical elements used in permanent magnets, represent c. 75% of the magnet rare earth basket by value, with economic dysprosium (Dy) and terbium (Tb) oxide credits enhancing the overall value of the rare earth basket.
Ecora owns a 0.85% GRR over the project, which increases to 0.95% if commercial production does not occur prior to 1 October 2027, and to 1.1% if commercial production does not occur prior to 1 July 2028.
The royalty is payable with reference to published seperated rare earth oxide prices without any payability adjustments regardless of whether the project produces seperated rare earths oxides or intermediate rare earths products.
As well as the $8.5m royalty acquisition, Ecora subscribed for 10,442,427 new ordinary shares in Rainbow Rare Earths Ltd for $1.5m in cash.
During 2025, Rainbow completed the following activities which moved the Phalaborwa project closer to achieving the publication of a definitive feasibility study targeted for 2026:
- delivered an exceptionally pure mixed rare earth product from testing of its process at its in-house laboratory in Johannesburg
- incorporated a cerium depletion step ahead of the final separation circuit, enhancing the quality of the high grade mixed rare earth product
- added yttrium to the Mineral Resource Estimate which could add upwards of $30m to the projects estimated EBTDA; and
- selected solvent extraction as the rare earth oxide separation route for Phalaborwa to produce separated NdPr oxides and the SEG+ Group at 99.55 purity