Peak gets permission for Teesside plant

23rd May 2018 By: Esmarie Iannucci - Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor: Australasia

PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Rare earths developer Peak Resources has been granted planning permission for the Teesside refinery, in the UK by the Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council.

The planning permission is the approval required for the construction of the planned rare earths separation plant, with the environmental licence required to operate the facility.

The environmental licence is currently being considered by the Environment Agency, and Peak is anticipating an award of the licence later this year.

The $165-million refinery will produce around 2 810 t/y of high purity neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) oxide, around 625 t/y of combined mid and heavy rare earth carbonate, some 7 995 t/y of lanthanum rare earth carbonate, and 3 475 t/y of cerium rare earth carbonate sourced from the Ngualla project, in Tanzania.

“We undertook a global search for the best place to locate the separation plant and Teesside stood out as the most cost effective and efficient place for us to commence operation,” said Peak CEO Rocky Smith.

“The support the local community has for the project just reaffirms our decision-making process. This latest milestone moves Ngualla closer to the excellent position of being able to commence construction in a timely manner to take advantage of the stronger NdPr rare earth demand driven by the electrification of our society and the fact that behind each lithium battery is an electric motor.”