I recently updated the TMR Advanced Rare-Earth Projects Index, to reflect project updates since the last edition. The effective date of the latest edition is November 19, 2015. The specifics:

• On October 6, 2015, Hastings Technology Metals Limited (ASX:HAS) (formerly Hastings Rare Metals Limited) announced an updated JORC-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Yangibana project in Australia. According to the associated news release, 8.1 Mt of the resource is at the Indicated level @ 1.07% TREO and 4.2 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 1.07% TREO, both without a cut-off grade.
• On October 8, 2015, Crossland Strategic Metals Limited (ASX:CUX) announced that its previous joint-venture partner in the Charley Creek project in Australia, Pancontinental Uranium Corporation (TSX.V:PUC), has sold its stake in the project to a private Australian company 100% owned by EMMCO Mining Sdn Bhd, a private Malaysian company.
• On October 12, 2015, Hastings Rare Metals Limited (ASX:HAS) announced a name change to Hastings Technology Metals Limited.
• On October 16, 2015, the Thorium Foundation announced completion of the acquisition of the Steenkampskraal project in South Africa, formerly owned by Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. (TSX.V:GWG) before being transferred to the Douglas Trust.
• On October 30, 2015, Arafura Resources Limited (ASX:ARU) announced an updated JORC-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Nolans project in Australia. According to the associated news release, 4.9 Mt of the resource is at the Measured level @ 3.2% TREO, 30.0 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 2.7% TREO, and 21 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 2.3% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 1% TREO.

The Index currently consists of 58 rare-earth mineral resources, associated with 53 advanced rare-earth projects and 49 companies, located in 35 regions within 16 countries.

I have also updated the pricing used in the Index data, to reflect the average monthly prices for October 2015. The underlying pricing data used are copyright © 2015 Argus Media Group, with all rights reserved and used with permission under license. You can access the updated details via the Index page.

One final note – the easy-to-remember shortcut for accessing the Index is www.RareEarths.org.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded rare-earth company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Graphite Projects Index, to reflect two new and two updated mineral-resource estimates, announced since the last update. The effective date of the updates is September 22, 2015. The specifics:

• On March 17, 2015, Graphite One Resources Inc. (TSX.V:GPH) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided resource estimate for its Graphite Creek graphite project in the USA. According to the associated news release, 18.0 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 6.3% Cg and 154.4 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 5.7% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 3% Cg;
• On June 17, 2015, Great Lakes Graphite Inc. (TSX.V:GLK) announced a maiden NI 43-101-guided resource estimate for its Lochaber graphite project in Canada. According to the associated news release, 4.1 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 4.0% Cg, at a cut-off grade of 2.5% Cg;
• On August 27, 2015, Talga Resources Ltd. (ASX:TLG) announced a maiden JORC-guided resource estimate for its Jalkunen graphite project in Sweden. According to the associated news release, 31.5 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 14.9% Cg, at a cut-off grade of 10% Cg; and
• On September 8, 2015, Kibaran Resources Limited (ASX:KNL) announced an updated JORC-guided resource estimate for its Meralani East graphite project in Tanzania. According to the associated news release, 7.4 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 6.7% Cg and 10.3 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 6.3% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 5% Cg.

You can access the updated details via the Index page.

The Index currently consists of 36 graphite mineral resources, associated with 33 advanced graphite projects, 25 companies and located within 10 countries. Including the projects on the Index, TMR is currently monitoring a total of 331 graphite projects under development associated with 159 companies in 31 countries.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded graphite company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Rare-Earth Projects Index, to reflect project updates since the last edition. The effective date of the latest edition is September 10, 2015. The specifics:

• Per a recent report from PWC, acting as the court-appointed monitor for the Sale or Investor Solicitation Process for Great Western Minerals Group Ltd (TSX.V:GWG), on July 17, 2015 ownership of the Steenkampskraal project in South Africa was transferred to Douglas Trust Reg, as part of the sale of Rare Earth Extraction Co. a Great Western subsidiary.

The Index currently consists of 58 rare-earth mineral resources, associated with 53 advanced rare-earth projects and 49 companies, located in 35 regions within 16 countries.

I have also updated the pricing used in the Index data, to reflect the average monthly prices for August 2015. The underlying pricing data used are copyright © 2015 Argus Media Group, with all rights reserved and used with permission under license. You can access the updated details via the Index page.

One final note – the easy-to-remember shortcut for accessing the Index is www.RareEarths.org.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded rare-earth company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Rare-Earth Projects Index, to reflect project updates since the last edition. The effective date of the latest edition is August 2, 2015. The specifics:

• On May 11, 2015, Ucore Rare Metals Inc. (TSX.V:UCU) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Bokan-Dotson Ridge project in the USA. According to the associated news release, 4.8 Mt of the resource is at the Indicated level @ 0.602% TREO and 1.1 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 0.603% TREO, both at a cut-off grade of 0.40% TREO;
• On May 12, 2015, Frontier Rare Earths Ltd. (TSX:FRO) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Zandkopsdrift project in South Africa as part of a completed pre-feasibility study. According to the associated news release, 23.0 Mt of the resource is at the Measured level @ 2.07% TREO, 22.7 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 1.73% TREO, and 1.1 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 1.52% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 1% TREO; and
• On June 17, 2015, Geomega Resources Inc. (TSX.V:GMA) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Montviel project in Canada. According to the associated news release, 82.4 Mt of the resource is at the Indicated level @ 1.51% TREO and 184.2 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 1.43% TREO, at an unspecified cut-off grade.

The Index currently consists of 58 rare-earth mineral resources, associated with 53 advanced rare-earth projects and 49 companies, located in 35 regions within 16 countries.

I have also updated the pricing used in the Index data, to reflect the average monthly prices for July 2015. The underlying pricing data used are copyright © 2015 Argus Media Group, with all rights reserved and used with permission under license. You can access the updated details via the Index page.

One final note – the easy-to-remember shortcut for accessing the Index is www.RareEarths.org.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded rare-earth company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Rare-Earth Projects Index, to reflect project updates since the last edition. The effective date of the latest edition is April 2, 2015. The specifics:

• In November 2014, Mineração Serra Verde, a subsidiary of Mining Ventures Brasil, completed a pre-feasibility study for the Serra Verde project in Brazil, which included an upgraded NI 43-101-guided mineral-resource estimate. Per the company’s Web site, 7 Mt of the resource is at the Measured level @ 0.16% TREO, 381 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 0.16% TREO, and 521 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 0.016% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 0.1% TREO;
• On December 17, 2014, AusAmerican Mining Limited (ASX:AIW), owners of the La Paz project in the USA, changed its name to AusROC Metals Ltd.(ASX:ARK);
• On January 22, 2015, IAMGold Corporation (NYSE:IAG) completed the sale of its Niobec niobium mine in Canada, and the associated adjacent REE deposit, to Magris Resources Inc., a private Canadian company.;
• On February 12, 2015, Greenland Minerals and Energy Ltd. (ASX:GGG) announced an updated JORC-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Kvanefjeld project in Greenland. According to the associated news release, 143 Mt of the resource is at the Measured level @ 1.21% TREO, 308 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 1.11% TREO, and 222 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 1.00% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 0.015% U3O8. We await a response from the company on some details of the elemental breakdown, before we update the distribution and grade tables; and
• On February 23, 2015, Northern Minerals Limited (ASX:NTU) announced an updated JORC-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Browns Range project in Australia. According to the associated news release, 4.7 Mt of the resource is at the Indicated level @ 0.70% TREO and 4.3 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 0.56% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 0.15% TREO.

The Index currently consists of 58 rare-earth mineral resources, associated with 53 advanced rare-earth projects and 49 companies, located in 34 regions within 16 countries.

I have also updated the pricing used in the Index data, to reflect the average monthly prices for March 2014, as reported by Metal Pages. You can access the updated details via the Index page.

One final note – the easy-to-remember shortcut for accessing the Index is www.RareEarths.org.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded rare-earth company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Rare-Earth Projects Index, to reflect project updates since the last edition. The effective date of the latest edition is January 21, 2015. The specifics:

• On December 17, 2014, Tantalus Rare Earths AG (F:TAE) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Tantalus project in Madagascar. According to the associated news release, 40.1 Mt of the resource is at the Measured level @ 0.10% TREO, 157.6 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 0.09% TREO, and 430.0 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 0.09% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 0.03-0.05% TREO without Ce. ; and
• On January 21, 2015, Tasman Metals Ltd. (TSX.V:TSM, MKT:TAS) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided mineral-resource estimate for the Norra Kärr project in Sweden, as part of a completed maiden pre-feasibility study (PFS). According to the associated news release, 31.1 Mt of the resource is at the Indicated level @ 0.61% TREO, at a cut-off grade of 0.4 wt% TREO. We await a response from the company on some details of the elemental breakdown, before we update the various tables with the new resource estimate.

The Index currently consists of 58 rare-earth mineral resources, associated with 53 advanced rare-earth projects and 49 companies, located in 34 regions within 16 countries.

I have also updated the pricing used in the Index data, to reflect the average monthly prices for December 2014, as reported by Metal Pages. You can access the updated details via the Index page.

One final note – the easy-to-remember shortcut for accessing the Index is www.RareEarths.org.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded rare-earth company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Graphite Projects Index, to reflect three new and two updated mineral-resource estimates, announced since the last update. The effective date of the updates is January 15, 2015. The specifics:

• On October 17, 2014, Sovereign Metals Limited (ASX:SVM) announced a maiden JORC-guided resource estimate for its Duwi graphite project in Malawi. According to the associated news release, 35.2 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 7.2% Cg and 50.7 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 7.1% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 5% Cg;
• On October 21, 2014, Triton Minerals Ltd. (ASX:TON) announced a maiden JORC-guided resource estimate for its Balama North Nicanda Hill graphite project in Mozambique. According to the associated news release, 328 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 11.0% Cg and 1,129.0 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 10.6% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 0% Cg (i.e. no cut off);
• On November 17, 2014, Valence Industries Limited (ASX:VXL) announced an updated JORC-guided resource estimate for its Uley graphite project in Australia. According to the associated news release, 0.3 Mt is at the Measured level @ 17.92% Cg, 1.9 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 11.84% Cg, and 0.9 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 8.89% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 3.5% Cg. In addition, the company reported a mineral resource of 0.2 Mt at the Indicated level for a stockpile of material at the Uley project, @ 6.23% Cg, with the same cut-off grade;
• On November 26, 2014, Magnis Resources Limited (ASX:MNS) announced a maiden JORC-guided resource estimate for its Nachu graphite project in Tanzania. According to the associated news release, 3.9 Mt is at the Measured level @ 5.58% Cg, 100.0 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 5.12% Cg, and 53.0 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 5.70% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 3% Cg; and
• On December 15, 2014, Mason Graphite Inc. (TSX.V:LLG) announced an updated NI 43-101-guided resource estimate for its Lac Gueret graphite project in Canada. According to the associated news release, 19.1 Mt is at the Measured level @ 17.88% Cg, 46.6 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 16.90% Cg, and 17.7 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 17.24% Cg, each at a cut-off grade of 5% Cg.

You can access the updated details via the Index page.

The Index currently consists of 33 graphite mineral resources, associated with 30 advanced graphite projects, 24 companies and located within 10 countries. Including the projects on the Index, TMR is currently monitoring a total of 321 graphite projects under development associated with 151 companies in 30 countries.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded graphite company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

I recently updated the TMR Advanced Rare-Earth Projects Index, to reflect project updates since the last edition. The effective date of the latest edition is December 5, 2014. The specifics:

• On October 10, 2014, Rare Element Resources Ltd. (TSX:RES, MKT:REE) shared details of the NI 43-101-compliant mineral-resource estimate for the Bear Lodge project in the USA, which was initially announced earlier in the year, in an updated pre-feasibility study for the project. According to the associated technical report, 2.7 Mt of the resource is at the Measured level @ 3.81% TREO, 13.5 Mt is at the Indicated level @ 2.93% TREO, and 41.7 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 2.53% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 1.5 wt% TREO;
• On November 10, 2014, Hastings Rare Metals Ltd. (ASX:HAS) announced an updated JORC-compliant mineral-resource estimate for the Yangibana project in Australia, a joint venture with Rare Earth Minerals PLC (AIM:REM). According to the associated news release, 4.0 Mt of the resource is at the Indicated level @ 1.59% TREO, and 2.8 Mt is at the Inferred level @ 1.43% TREO, each at a cut-off grade of 0.5 wt% TREO; and
• In the same news release, Hastings Rare Metals Ltd. (ASX:HAS) indicated that the Hastings project in Australia is now known as the Brockmans project.

The Index currently consists of 58 rare-earth mineral resources, associated with 53 advanced rare-earth projects and 49 companies, located in 34 regions within 16 countries.

I have also updated the pricing used in the Index data, to reflect the average monthly prices for November 2014, as reported by Metal Pages. You can access the updated details via the Index page.

One final note – the easy-to-remember shortcut for accessing the Index is www.RareEarths.org.

Disclosure: at the time of writing, Gareth Hatch holds no shares or stock options in any of the companies mentioned in this article, or in any publicly traded rare-earth company, nor is he doing paid consulting for any such company.

It’s no secret that there is a surplus of cerium (Ce) supply within the rare-earth-element (REE) market. More recently I’ve been hearing folks grumbling that we will soon be awash with yttrium (Y) too, with more than one junior-mining executive referring to Y as “the Ce of the heavy REE world”…

While I do not agree with this sentiment when it comes to future Y supply, I am always interested to learn about potential new applications for this element, given the greater potential for availability in coming years. So when Ryan Castilloux, author of the recent Adamas Intelligence report “Rare Earth Market Outlook: Supply, Demand and Pricing from 2014-2020” told me about an emerging application that could dramatically increase demand for Y, I was intrigued. When he started talking about another application that could also significantly increase demand for Ce as well, I naturally started to pay close attention.

As part of his recent 12-month study of the rare-earth sector, Ryan uncovered these and numerous other potential new uses for REEs that could significantly impact demand before 2020. Not all of them have the same chances of penetrating the market, and the actual impact on demand will vary, but being aware of these new uses is vital to understanding the medium- and long-term prospects for the sector.

Following our recent discussion on his new report, I got together with Ryan again recently and persuaded him to discuss some of these emerging end uses in more detail. We put together a 40-minute video of the discussion, which I think you’ll find to be very interesting.

You can access the free video by clicking here or by clicking the image above. Get in touch with us if you have any questions on the discussion.

You can also get more details on Ryan’s 573-page report by visiting http://www.REEreport.com. – if you order an electronic copy of the report by the end of December 5, 2014, TMR will send you a free printed hard copy, as well as a copy of our forthcoming report on recent global rare-earth import & export statistics, covering dozens of individual rare-earth products and product groups.

You hardly need me to point out that the rare-earth junior mining sector is in a challenging place right now. The current state of rare-earth prices and their impact on the market cap of pretty much every company in the sector, has everyone concerned.

Are things going to get better? Are future rare-earth prices going to reach the numbers predicted in recent scoping and pre-feasibility studies? What will be the effects of the ongoing crackdown on illegal mining in China? What will the demand profile for individual rare earths really be, in the not-too-distant future?

These questions and more like them, were the basis of a 12-month-long ‘deep-dive’ study of the rare-earth sector by Adamas Intelligence. Adamas recently concluded that study and has published its findings in a 573-page report, titled “Rare Earth Market Outlook: Supply, Demand and Pricing from 2014-2020“.

I recently got together with Ryan Castilloux, founder of Adamas and the lead author on the report (which also looks at the period 2008-2013), to discuss some of its major findings.

We put together a 30-minute video of the discussion, which gets into the structure and content of the report, as well as featuring key data and charts to describe top-level data.


The good news? The market and prices are set to bounce back, particularly in the face of growing demand for individual rare earths, for specific applications.

Ryan has done a masterful job with this report, which is just about the most comprehensive review of the rare-earth sector that I’ve ever seen.

You can access the free video by clicking here or by clicking the image above. Get in touch with us if you have any questions on the discussion, or the report itself; and look out for details of a second video that we’re working on, discussing some exciting emerging end-use applications for rare earths, which could have a further positive impact on rare-earth demand before 2020.